


Non Omnis Moriar

by kijikun



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Biting, F/M, M/M, Vampire Sex, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-28
Updated: 2011-12-28
Packaged: 2017-10-28 07:58:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 28,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/305638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kijikun/pseuds/kijikun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Two brothers search for the man who trained them to be warriors against supernatural evil. Two brothers bound together by blood not birth, search for their father, the vampire that taught them to survive in a world that hates what they are. Their worlds are about to collide. Hunters and monsters rarely survive, but none of them have ever followed the rules.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Co-written with ameonna1

The home is on a hill, overlooking the valley and the village that lay in it. It's a village of the dead now. Smoke, thick and black even against the night sky, rises like a sacrifice to the gods. The wind smells like ash, like blood. Raiders had come.

Come past the dwelling. Found a child playing in the afternoon sun. A boy of four.

Maria woke to the smell of blood and smoke. Her _son's_ blood. She found her son's body bloody and mutilated upon the ground, as twilight sunk into night. The valley seems to be on fire, but she hadn't cared. She'd gathered her child to her and screamed. Cursed the gods, cursed Rome, cursed herself.

Her husband, her mate, finds her hours later. Several broken bodies of the raiders lay around her and she is still clutching her child. Ioannes falls to his knees beside her.

She cradles the small body against her chest. Maria is done with tears, with sobs, and with screams. They didn't bring back her boy. Ioannes kneels beside her stroking their son's blood soaked hair from his face. Their son is dead. Their precious little boy.

"We should have been able to save him," she whispers and her husband pulls her to him, the limp bloody body pressed between them. They live off of blood, it gives them life, strength, power. And none of it saved her child. "How did I not wake? I should have heard even in my sleep!"

"Maria," Ioannes whispers, his voice rough, chocked. "This is my fault. I should have... if I'd been here."

He'd been to a village a nights travel away, buying new sheep for their flock. The flock that gave them the blood they need and the means to raise their child. "It's only the fault of those who killed him. "

"We need to move, the dawn will come soon," Ioannes tells her softly. As if they should hide from the sun. "We need to..."

She knows eternity will be nothing but a knife now. Even with Ioannes at her side this... this is worse than death. "Avenge him," she says sharply. "Hunt down the those that killed him and make them _pay_."

"Yes," Ioannes agrees, she can tell just by his voice that his fangs are out. "I'll tear down the empire if I have to."

Maria makes a sound in her throat, and presses a kiss to her son's forehead. Blood would spill for this. Blood must be given for blood taken.

"I can give your son back to you," a pleasant but strangely accented male voice says.

She jerks her head up and Ioannes moves into a crouch, ready to attack. "Ioannes," she gasps, grabbing her husband's arm.

The strange is wearing the garb of a Centurion, sword hanging at his side. He's _almost_ handsome, but Maria can sense nothing but _wrong_ from him and from the way Ioannes moves he can feel it too. The man's eyes are...

 _Yellow_.

"What do you want, _demon_?" Ioannes hisses, rising to his full height. The smell of smoke and blood must have covered the scent of demon. "We wish no quarrel with your kind."

The yellow-eyed demon looks at the child Maria holds. "And I have none with you, _Strix_."

"You said you could give us back our son," Maria says, still gripping Ioannes' arm.

"He's a demon you cannot..." Ioannes protests.

She shows her fangs more than smiles. "I don't intended to trust him, husband." She raises her chin meeting yellow eyes with white ones. "What will you want in return?"

The yellow-eyed demon spreads his hands palm up. "I only ask what is fair, Maria. Blood for blood. A son for a son."

Ioannes goes still beside her, and she slowly climbs to her feet. _A son for a son._ But they could have none. Was the demon being... merciful? No, such a thing is impossible but...

For her dear little boy to be alive and whole. To be given the chance to turn him when he was old enough.

"If we take your deal, you will give our son back to us? Whole and alive?" Ioannes asks, and she feels the heartache and conflict in him.

She feels it herself. Demons are not to be trusted, but they keep their deals. More so than any of the gods. They will have no more children, they're vampires, they cannot. Maria cannot think of any means that would cause their family to grow beyond one son. "He will be given back to us _human_? No demon influence or taint?"

"You will have your son back just as he was before. He will be healthy. He will grow and thrive," yellow-eyes promises. "All I ask is for my due. When you have another son, I will come and take him for my own."

Ioannes looks at her. He wants to say yes. She can sense it, feel it, see it. Gods forgive her, she wishes to as well. This son back in exchange for a son that will never come?

Yellow-eyes tilts his head. "Do we have a deal? The morning is fast approaching."

"Yes," Maria says, her voice clear, hard.

"Both of you agree?" the Yellow-eyed demon asks.

Ioannes closes his eyes sagging slightly against Maria. "We both agree, demon, you have a deal."

Maria knows the deal must be sealed with a kiss but she still recoils at the touch of the demon's lips, and looks away as he kisses her husband. As soon as it is done, the small body in her arms moves, then whimpers protesting at being held so tight.

"Mama," he protests. "'M not a baby."

Ioannes' gasp of joy is almost as beautiful as the sound of Decanus' voice. When Maria looks up from showering her son with kisses and kissing her husband in joy - the Yellow eyed Centurion is gone.

Maria hopes to never see him again.

The family retreats into their home, safely hidden from the morning sun. They do not speak of the deal or the demon.

Years pass, _centuries_ and that day fades along with the others. Maria becomes Mary, Ioannes turns into John and somewhere along the line Decanus starts calling himself simply Dean. They all find the name Winchester when they find berth in Britain because their own surname is so old it may as well be forgotten. They adapt, they hide, they do what their kind have been doing since the beginning of the breath of the world and somewhere along the changing seasons they commit the harshest sin for their kind.

They forget.

It isn't until after Samuel is turned that Mary dreams of yellow eyes in the dark.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

The smoke is billowing up into sky painting the stars with ash and blaze. The servants are screaming and Dean can't run fast enough. He leaps over a smashed carriage and up the stairs into the front hall of his home. _His home_... which is currently burning to the ground and he can't find his parents or his brother or...

"Dean!" He snaps to a halt when his father calls him, his frock coat gone and face smeared with smoke, he's trying to drag... Samuel, _Sam_. His brother is passed into his arms and he can smell the stench on him. He'd feared hunters when he'd seen the fire but he can smell the rich tinny scent of demons. Sam's face is smeared with blood that isn't his and Dean doesn't have time to ask any questions.

"Take your brother outside as fast as you can and don't look back! Now, Dean, go!"

He obeys, because his father knows better and... he didn't see his mother. He didn't see her and he knows as soon as he's started down the stairs that his father has gone back into the blaze. He closes his eyes and moves as fast as he can.

His father finds them by the edge of the woods, deep in the thick of them is a hidden mine, a place to sleep until the sun seeps away. Sam is shaking, babbling as Dean keeps his arms around him. He's wiped that filth off his face but he doesn't know how much his brother swallowed. They aren't supposed to drink from demons. He doesn't know what it will do to him. Dean holds him in the dark, whispering words of comfort as Sam keens under his hands like a wounded animal.

His father finds them.

His father is alone.

Years pass, centuries, and in the new country where everything is sharper, sweeter, brighter, the three of them reinvent themselves again.

They don't forget, they never forget.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

  
**Stanford University, Oct 31 2005**   


It's dark, the streetlights barely lighting up the comfortable loft, and silent. Almost silent, until a shadow moves and sends a beaded curtain swinging. The shadow waits, pauses and then is abruptly tackled from behind. Nothing gets broken in the brief tussle between brothers but the fight doesn't end until one of them is pinned on the floor, both breathing heavily.

"Whoa, easy, tiger!"

A far too long moment passes. Because it can't be, but...

"Gabriel?"

Castiel closes his eyes at his brother's laughter because that's the only thing keeping him from punching the idiot in the face.

"You scared the hell out of me!" He hisses. He doesn't wish to wake up Amelia if the "fight" already hadn't. She had a early shift.

"That's 'cause you're out of practice," Gabriel smirks, looking as cocky as he ever had.

Castiel frowns and in an instant, twists, and uses what height advantage he has to reverse their positions, slamming his older brother maybe a little too hard into the floor.

Gabriel coughs, "or not." Another moment passes before Gabriel grins, "Get off of me."

Castiel rolls his eyes but gives his brother his hand and pulls him up. He leads his brother into the kitchen. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Looking for a beer and a candy bar. Got any, Cas?" Gabriel asks, moving over to the fridge. "Christ what the hell do you live off of? Is that _salad_?"

"You broke in to my place. You are not allowed to criticize my eating habits." He almost shuts the door on Gabriel's face.

Gabriel rolls his shoulders. "I was in the area so I thought hey, I'll drop in one my college-boy baby brother."

With a sigh, Castiel pinches the bridge of his nose. "You could have called. My number hasn't changed in the last three years."

There a heavy silence, and Gabriel doesn't look at him. "Would you have picked up?"

Castiel can't answer that. He wishes he could say he doesn't know what he'd do, but it's a lie. He wouldn't have picked up and he'd have deleted any message without listening to it. They cut him off first he reminds himself. Gabriel and Michael both.

"Yeah, I thought so," Gabriel doesn't sound disappointed, just resigned for a moment.

The light in the kitchen suddenly flips on and Amelia is standing there in her pajamas holding a baseball bat at completely the wrong angle to be effective. Castiel sighs as she lowers it, though if she'd hit him or Gabriel they would have deserved it.

"Cas?" She's looking in between them, confused and he realizes that he's never brought up his family around her.

"Sorry, Amelia. Uh, this is my brother Gabriel. Gabe, this is my roommate Amelia."

He winces when Gabriel grins at her, he knows that grin and is secretly grateful that she brought the bat, maybe it will keep Gabriel from hitting on her. Maybe not.

"Didn't mean to wake you up cutie." Gabriel says at the same time Amelia says, "You have a brother?"

"Yes, but he was just leaving," Castiel shoots Gabriel an 'aren't you?' look but is completely ignored.

"He's got two actually," Gabriel grins, leaning against the fridge like he meant to stay there, "Me and Michael. We're in the family business, lot of traveling, so we don't see Cas here often enough. I thought I'd drop by..."

Never would be often enough. That was it, Castiel is done and he grabs Gabriel by the arm, "Which was nice of you and I really enjoyed it but I have morning classes, Amelia has an early shift, and you can come back at a decent hour."

Amelia giggles and shakes her head as Gabriel blows her a kiss while Cas drags him to the front door. It isn't until they're outside that Gabriel whistles, "Please tell me you've hit that. She is a fox!"

He does not have the time or the patience for this. "She's my roommate, she's not interested in men, and I respect her too much to..."

"Whoa? Girls girl? Would she let you watch?" Gabriel leers. " _Does_ she let you watch?"

"Gabriel! Get out! Go kill some harpies or something. Just leave me alone!" Castiel half shouts in exasperation.

"Fine, fine," Gabriel holds up his hands, "You're trying really valiantly to be normal here. I respect that. Quick question though, have you heard anything from Michael?"

Castiel closes his eyes and runs his hand through his hair. "If you mean has he broken into my apartment at an obscene hour in the morning to harass my roommate and berate my eating habits, then no."

Gabriel frowns and makes that terrible 'hmm'ing' noise that always makes Castiel's heart drop. "Gabriel. Where is Michael?" It comes out shakier than he'd planned.

Gabriel rolls his shoulder in that vaguely guilty way he always does and frowns. "He hasn't checked in for a couple of days. I went through some of our contacts and no one's quite sure where he was headed."

That isn't like Michael. He was almost in constant contact with Castiel until... Well, the falling out. "You weren't with him?" He doesn't mean for it to sound like an accusation but it comes out like one anyways.

He gets a look and Gabriel shakes his head, "Nah, I got caught up with a bunch of witches in Detroit, they uh, cursed me. I woke up in a motel with a note from Michael saying he'd be back and to stay out of trouble but that was two weeks ago."

This was the very definition of not good. This was their parents all over again, the three of them sitting in a motel waiting for someone that was never coming home. "You don't have any leads on this?"

In response Gabriel drags a cell phone out of his pocket and tosses it to him. "Got a weird voice mail the other night. I can't make heads or tails of it but it's from his phone."

Castiel listens to the crack and pop of static until something low and sibilant catches his attention, it's a low rhythmic chanting barely there in the background and Castiel swallows.

"That's Latin, along with something half lost that they used to call demonic." He frowns trying to pick out words in the static.

Gabriel's grin is genuine and brilliant. Sometimes Cas misses it. Sometimes. "I knew you'd know what it was."

He tosses the phone back to his brother and shakes his head, "It's something summoning, thanking, fourteenth century, start looking there." He tries not to start thinking about what books he could check, though his fingers almost itch with the urge to research. He's done though. This isn't his life. This isn't what he does. The only research he needs to do is for his senior essay.

"Oh, well... I was hoping..." Gabriel starts, then trails off.

Castiel squeezes his eyes shut and shakes his head. "No, I told you I was done hunting and I'm done."

"Come on Cas, I can't do this by myself."

"Yes, you can," Castiel assures him turning to the door and trying to forget the words that his brain was still trying to translate. It isn't medieval Latin, it's older, classical. Future perfect... He shakes his head.

"Fine," Gabriel pouts, "But I don't want to. Cas, if this is a demon, an actual demon..."

Castiel snorts. "There hasn't been any demonic activity since 1973 when Leonard Campbell..."

"Yeah, yeah," Gabriel bites, "all the hunter's kids know that story and you know it's bullshit with everything going on right now, which I _know_ you've been keeping track of. Something big is happening and I think Michael just got caught in the middle of it."

Castiel sighs and thinks about the wall of newspaper clippings in the walk in closet that Amelia thinks is his 'dark room'. About all the numbers adding up to the words 'epic cataclysm'. About how he tells himself every day that it isn't his responsibility anymore. He gave that life up, after one poltergeist too many, one more person they couldn't save. He tells himself that one day he'll leave off the internet and clean out that closet, all the while pinning some picture of a will 'o' wisp in the correct section.

"Cas," Gabriel says and then he says a word that Castiel wasn't even sure his brother knew, "Please?"

Shit.

 _Shit._

"If I miss finals, I am going to kill you," Castiel grumbles. If he misses finals _he's_ dead.

Gabriel grins. "Like I haven't heard that before."

ϞϟϠϡϗ

  
**Red Lodge, Montana, Nov 9th 2005**   


"Sammy! Get up!" Dean bangs on the wall of the abandoned house that they've been hiding in for way too long.

He wants out, into the night air and into the car with the windows down putting miles between them and this fucking ramshackle house that _still_ smelled like dead raccoon. He hears a sleepy mumble before he bangs open the door to the crawlspace and glares at his brother who lovingly glares back.

"I will leave you here. You can have this creaky ass dump and all of it's wonderful smells or you can stop being a princess and get your ass in the car."

Sam growls but starts the process of pulling his bulk out of the cramped crawlspace.

"Why do we have to see Gordon? Gordon's an asshole. He's not even the same kind as us so I don't see why we have to..." Sam drops to the floor all dusty with his hair all messed up and Dean knows if he calls him cute he'll get thrown through a wall.

"Shut it Sammy. We're in his territory, we pop by, we make nice, we get the fuck out of here. I do not want to get stuck in the middle of some retarded pissing contest just because he thinks we're too good to follow etiquette," Dean snaps.

Sam smooths his hair back and grimaces at the drywall dust that sticks to his fingers then he frowns at Dean, "Did you just say etiquette?"

"Bite me."

"No thanks. You'd taste terrible," Sam shoots back making what Dean had about a decade or so ago started calling a 'bitchface'. "And if Gordon's little group is having "dinner" when we drop by? It'll be Woodstock all over again!"

"We will make sure that doesn't happen," Dean grumbles, he secretly just wants to drive out to Gordon's place and wait five minutes then call it good.

Sam is bitching and moaning all the way down to the car, waiting, while Dean yanks the blue tarp off her, it's ridiculous but something like his baby out by an abandoned house? Too many questions, and Dean hates questions.

Questions lead to hunters and Dean hates hunters almost as much as questions.

"You just want to ask him if he's seen dad," Sam points out sullenly. "The rest is bullshit."

Dean wonders if he takes a deep breath and counts to a million if that will settle the twisting doubt every time Sam opens his mouth. This is his brother, bound by blood and loss and sure they're vampires but sometimes Sam was just too damn emo.

"Don't you?" He snaps, shoving the tarp in a ball and tucking it into the back of the Impala's trunk. "Wouldn't it be better to hear if Gordon's fucking rats tore him apart than not knowing? Shit Sam! It's been practically a century since he disappeared!"

"It's more likely that he's not coming back if he..." Sam starts, again. He always starts.

"Don't say it," Dean spits. "He wouldn't have done that. He wouldn't have given up like that. You _know_ he wouldn't."

His father was a creature of vengeance, of spite, he wouldn't have walked into the sun. A thing like that... He wouldn't have. He'd have died better than... If he was dead. He feels Sam edge up beside him, can smell the regret on him.

"Dean, I..."

"No chick flick moments," Dean narrows his eyes as Sam smiles, "and dust your ass off before you get in the car, you'll mess up the upholstery."

Sam promptly resumes his bitching and Dean grins as he slides into the car and rolls down the tinted window. He wants to get in and out of Gordon's place before the night is through. Damn place was like a hornet's nest and a maze, once you were in it was fucking impossible to find your way out, if you weren't already dead.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

"I think this is going well," Gabriel grins over his shoulder at Cas. He blasts another of the oncoming vampires managing to half decapitate her. He finishes her off after pulling his axe from a recently ex-vampire.

Cas is wielding a sword, his mouth set in a grim line. "You have the worst idea of what going well means."

They're trying to keep back to back, fighting off the swarm of vampires. He honestly hadn't expect this many. The only hive he and Michael ever came across had only numbered in the single digits. "Hey, we're not a late night snack yet are we?"

"If we die, I'm going to request a separate heaven from you," Cas grumbles.

Gabriel smirks. It's good to have his little brother back. "Stop being such a downer. We're doing good!"

Cas grunts stumbling back into Gabriel. There's the sound of a blade slicing flesh. "This is not good. This is the complete opposite of good," he yells.

The throng of vampires around them still seems as thick as when they started. _Shit_. "We just need to change the battle ground, little bro," Gabriel tells him.

"You cannot be thinking what I think you are," Castiel protests. "I thought we agreed to leave all explosives in the car."

"No, I was just agreeing that I was listening to you while you told me to leave the explosives in the car." Gabriel's grins a bit wildly and more than a little cocky.

Cas makes a frustrated noise and takes down another vampire. "You're going to get us _killed_!"

Gabriel rolls his shoulder. "Nah, I've got the number of the cute red head at that diner. Not dying before I get a bit of that. Castiel makes a sound of disgust but Gabriel just laughs. "Think you can create a diversion?"

He needs Cas to get clear. Protecting Cas has always been his job and he's not going to let any damn vampires take him out. Or explosions. Or cave ins.

"I'm not leaving you here," Cas says angrily. "That was Michael's number one rule: don't split up."

"Well, Michael isn't here!" Gabriel snaps with more force than he means too. "Just get yourself clear. Head towards the surface and I'll meet you there."

He sees Castiel hesitate, calculating odds probably down to the tenth percentile before he turns, running, splitting up the vampires that had surrounded them.

Gabriel grins at the ones that remain in the room, Castiel's fast, he'll make it.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

"Yeah," Dean says as he peers through binoculars while hanging out of the impala's window, "Something is definitely _up_."

"You've gotta be kidding me," Sam grouses as he slouches in he passenger seat.

They had decided after some debate to park across the river from Gordon's place and scope it out before wandering over. Gordon was way too territorial to bullshit this and now Dean's sort of glad they did. He's watching about a half dozen vampires run around the barn like chickens with their heads cut off and trying to figure out just exactly what got them all riled up when there's an explosion that lights up the night sky and takes out half the barn.

Dean's shaking the bright from his eyes while Sam sits up in his seat, "What _the hell_ was _that_?"

But Dean is scrambling out of the car window and dropping the binoculars because shit! Someone is fucking with Gordon and that is awesome! Or one of Gordon's vamps just pressed the wrong button and that is also hilarious. He's gotta see this up close.

"Dean! Dean! Wait!" Sam is chirping behind him like a worried mother but he's staying in the car.

Dean takes off through the trees, running alongside the river, grinning like an idiot when another muffled explosion cuts through the air followed by frantic shouting. It's gotta be hunters, or... what the fuck were those idiots calling themselves? The Templars? Might be them, they liked fire. He digs his fingers into a tree and hauls himself up until he's got a perfect view of that rotted old house Gordon used as a entrance to his lair and the half smoking barn. There are vampires everywhere trying to put out the fire and he doesn't actually see any sort of... there, a couple of headless bodies scattered by the house. Definitely an attack of some sort, maybe other vamps? That's happened before. He's craning around the tree to get a better look when he spots someone running away from the place. They're trying to stick to the treeline and Dean maps out a path, there's a bridge to the east, they're probably headed there.

He grins when four of Gordon's vamps tear themselves away from the fire and start after the figure. Well shit, looks like he's got a hunter.

He tears through the trees and ends up pressed downwind on top of outcropping overlooking the river and the bridge. Which is definitely where the hunter was heading. He can smell him on the wind now, fear and adrenaline all mixed up with that heady human flavor. Dean crawls forward slowly as the human sprints towards the bridge, but one of the vamps is close behind. Dean watches the hunter fall when the vampire grabs at his shoulder. He rolls gracefully and his arms comes up in a perfect arc, Dean sees the flash of metal in the moonlight.

Suddenly that vampire is missing it's head.

Without missing a beat the hunter is back on his feet and crossing the bridge.

Well, shit. This guy knew what he was doing. Maybe.

Dean winces as two more vamps leaps out of the tree line slamming the human into the ground. That had to hurt. He watches the scuffle roll around on the bridge, he hears a vampire scream and the air fills with the tinny bitter scent of vamp blood and then...

One of the vamps gets the hunter across the face, four deep slash marks, and the scent that fills the air is _divine_.

Dean blinks dumbly as something in him growls, twists, tells him that human is _his_ and why is he sitting here being an idiot and watching him when...

There are more vampires tearing out of the trees, more than Dean could handle and he freezes from where he's almost broken his cover. That's... that's not like him... He doesn't kill humans, he doesn't... _want_ them. He shakes his head, what the fuck!?

More than a dozen vampires on the bridge and the hunter with his back to the railing, maybe if Dean caused a distraction he could run or...

He sees a flash of blue eyes for an instant before the hunter leaps, jumps over the bridge railing and into the water below.

Okay, apparently this guy is a serious badass. Dean is already scrambling up, heading down river as the other vamps cuss and regroup, if they go after the hunter then... The glow in the distance lights up again and Dean hears another explosion.

The vampires scatter as Dean picks his way along the river, it's deep in the middle but the edges are muddy and shallow, his feet slip as he hurries. He doesn't even know what the hell he's doing. Sam is going to kill him if he comes back with a human hunter. What the hell is he gonna tell him? There's a little voice in the back of his brain going, _he's hot, keep him, keep him, keep him_. Sam's gonna start all on finding soul mates and blood bonds and fuck that. This isn't that. Dean would know if it was... _that_.

Dean freezes when he hears a soft noise, something barely above the sound of the river and then a pained groan.

There, about thirty feet up, a figure sprawled on the bank.

He lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding and goes to drag the hunter the rest of the way out of the river, he struggles briefly and Dean hisses when he gets hit in the ribs, bastards got a hell of a right hook.

"Ease up!" Dean snaps, "I'm not gonna hurt you."

Blue eyes look up at him the moonlight for a moment before they roll back in the humans head and Dean is left holding nothing but dead weight. It's another moment before he shifts forward and half drags half carries the man over to the treeline. He's too slippery with mud to carry back to the car. Fucking fantastic.

Dean pulls out his cellphone.

Sam is going to kill him.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Sam's gonna kill Dean.

He's gonna... because this is just too much. It was bad enough that Dean took off because splitting up was so against Dad's rules. When he got the call to drive the car to the bridge he'd assumed that something was going on, either Dean had met up with Gordon's people or Dean was hurt.

Not 'I found a hunter let's keep him.'

"Are you kidding me? What part of lay low did you forget? That's a hunter! Dean! Other hunters are going to be looking for him!"

Dean is predictably ignoring all the arguments that _make sense_ and dragging the mud covered human up to the side of the car.

"Yeah, yeah, hey, get the tarp out of the back."

"No way," Sam shakes his head. "This new insanity is all you."

He can't even fathom what the hell Dean is thinking. He'd gotten half a story about there being a hunter and Gordon's guys and something maybe they can ask him questions and Sam wasn't sure how any of that was their problem or what the hell the hunter could offer them besides other hunters with long pointy stakes and swords. Dean has to come to his senses.

 _Swords, Dean, think about the fucking swords._

"Sam!" Dean snaps at him and Sam swallows.

That look in his brother's eyes is new. A sort of half mad, half desperate begging thing. It takes Sam a moment to realize that he's never seen that look in his brother's eyes. Not even when he was half delirious on demon blood and their home was burning.

"Fuck, Dean," Sam grits out but he's getting the tarp out of the back and helping Dean wrap the unconscious hunter in it because something happened. Something that Dean's not talking about or fuck, doesn't even realize is going on.

Sam frowns and looks at the hunter that Dean is currently heaving into the backseat of the impala, "Dude, he smells like a toilet."

Dean frowns, something inside him is warring, Sam can see it behind his eyes. "We can stop at a motel, hose him off."

"You want to check into a motel, this close to dawn and smuggle in a body wrapped in a tarp?"

Dean tilts his head from side to side, "Maybe not."

Sam shakes his head. "I don't know how you survived before me."

Dean glares at him but they get in the car and roll the windows down.

An hour later finds them back at the abandoned house that is no more aired out than when they left it. They'd stripped the hunter out of his soggy clothes and washed him off with baby wipes and a a gallon of distilled water they picked up at a gas station.

The hunter was currently handcuffed to the brass bed that had been left behind by the previous owners while Dean cleaned out the slashes on his face. He isn't bad looking, though Sam doesn't think he looks like the kind of guy that should be wearing rainbow boxers but hey, each to his own. Dean is fretting and jumpy, and Sam watches him get up and pace as he goes through the hunters wallet.

There are three IDs in there along with a bunch of soggy dollars bills, a couple of credit cards, and a ticket stub that the ink has run off of. Sam flips through the IDs and chuckles which prompts Dean to frown and thrust his chin at him.

"What?"

"His IDs. Dylan Thomas, John Donne, Robert Burns, they're all poets."

"Great, you two can be nerdy together," Dean snaps and Sam rolls his eyes.

He's not going to be anything with this hunter. Once Dean realizes what a monumentally bad idea this is, he's gonna say 'I told you so' and they are going to get the fuck out of here. Head south, maybe go bother Bobby. He frowns, the back of the wallet is stiffer than it should be and it takes him a moment to work open the seam. A California drivers license and a college ID.

Castiel Courier.

Apparently the angel of Thursday goes to Stanford.

"Hey, does Courier ring a bell?" Sam asks.

"Courier?" Dean frowns, "Charles Courier, he was a hunter back in the seventies. Not really a big name. I think a wendigo took him out."

Sam flips over the ID and presents it to Dean, "Think he had kids?"

"Well shit," Dean says taking the ID in his hands and frowning.

Sam is about to toss the wallet onto the bed when he spots a corner of something in the seam, after a bit of fiddling he pulls out a picture. Three boys, next to what looked like a forest or garden or something. They're all soot smeared and dirty. He recognizes the hunter, Castiel, as the youngest right away, it's the eyes. He's smiling shyly next to an older boy with messy brown hair that has the biggest shit eating grin on his face that Sam's ever seen, behind them is an even older boy with dark hair and hazel eyes with his arms around the both of them. He looks proud. Sam flips the picture over and in shaky little kid hand writing are the words, "Michael, Gabriel, Castiel; First poltergeist."

Poltergeist is misspelled.

He hands the picture over to Dean when he comes back from muttering and pacing. He can't decipher the look on his brother's face. It's something strange and hovering, Dean's scent is jumbled up with a thousand different things and it's scaring Sam.

He wants to say something, because they should leave. They should just get in the Impala and find a motel or another house or sleep in the car. Just get out of here, away from whatever this was that was getting under his brother's skin.

The needed to go somewhere _safe_.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Gabriel can't find Cas. It both terrifies him and comforts him. Because he hasn't found a body but he hasn't found any signs that his baby brother is alive. He forces himself to calm down, forces himself to read all the little clues that might lead him to his brother.

He finds something across the river. Drag marks, tire tracks. It's his only lead so he follows it.

And promises death to any creature or person he finds if Castiel is harmed.

Gabriel doesn't let himself think that Cas is dead.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Castiel is only half aware that someone is talking. He's cold and his face hurts and where the hell have his clothes gone? It takes him a long moment to realize the reason he can't move his left hand is that it's caught on something. No, scratch that, he's handcuffed to a bed.

Fuck.

Please let this be a ridiculous practical joke that Gabriel is playing on him. He could live with that, he could live with Gabriel being a complete asshole just as long as...

"He's a hunter, and he's going to apparently have at least two brothers looking for him. I do not want to get staked tonight. Not to mention all the vampires that he didn't manage to kill. We should leave him. Gordon's people won't track _us_."

Someone hisses, something long and strange sounding. "Geez, we might as well take him to Gordon as tribute if we're gonna do that."

 _Fuck._

Fuck, vampires had him handcuffed to a bed and he couldn't remember what the hell happened after he decided jumping to his death was better than getting torn limb from limb because either way Gabriel was going to... Shit, Gabriel. He cracks an eye open and takes in peeling drywall, muddy clothes in a pile that he recognizes as his. Wait. Vampires stripped him and... he's wearing Gabriel's boxers. Great. Best night ever. He can't even get devoured with dignity now. He wonders if they laughed. Probably, that would be his luck. He is going to haunt the shit out of Gabriel for not doing the laundry.

"Dammit, Sammy, we just can't..." The person cuts off abruptly and Castiel hears footsteps.

He closes his eyes. Fuck.

"Dude, I know you're awake. So lets cut the crap out."

Slowly Castiel opens his eyes. Okay, he was not expecting that. He was not expecting green eyes and brown hair and lips that should be illegal in all states. He was expecting a monster but really he should have known. Vampires can pass for human and... He's trying to come up with something suitably threatening to say taking into account that he's handcuffed to a bed in a pair of rainbow colored boxers and in no position to be making any threats but...

What he gets out is, "I think I'm going to throw up."

He's never seen a vampire move away from him that quickly. Castiel curls in a ball until the nausea passes and when he's paying attention again someone is matter of factually talking about water born diseases and they're half way through the symptoms of botulism when Castiel groans and the green eyed man speaks.

"Fuck Sam, you're gonna make me throw up."

"All I'm saying is that nothing in that river could have been good for him." There's a shift in the air and another man walks up, frowning at him.

He was taller than the other and has long floppy brown hair but the same eyes. Maybe they won't eat him if they think he's diseased. The night is looking up.

"You going to throw up?" the taller man asks, his forehead crinkled in what would probably have been concern if he weren't well... a monster.

"Yes." Cas mutters, "No. I don't know." His stomach has currently decided to mimic that ride Gabriel took him on at Pacific Beach. He closes his eyes until the room becomes less of a tilt a whirl for him in time to hear two vampires discussing the possible known locations of a bucket. He thinks he laughs at the absurdity of it all.

He loses track of a little bit of time because when he opens his eyes a plastic waste bin has been procured from God-knows-where and the shorter man is far too much in his personal space. Not that he'll complain entirely too much about that. The man... thing is handsome, frighteningly so, or maybe it's more frightening how Castiel can't stop thinking about how handsome he is. Gabriel is probably going to rescue him then. Gabriel always rescues him from the pretty ones but who knows where the hell he goes when Castiel is up against a bog hag or that thing in Jersey that split its mouth open and dripped acid all over Castiel's favorite boots.

He isn't aware that he's said anything but the vampire says, "We didn't find anyone else but you. Was he the one setting off the fireworks?"

Fireworks. The dynamite that Castiel told Gabriel to _leave in the fucking car_. Castiel nods and hears an argument start and when he opens his eyes again the taller vampire is laying on top of the wide dresser in the corner with his arm over his eyes like he is absolutely done with the conversation. Castiel knows that move, he's done it a lot. In every motel from sea to shining sea.

"Look, I just have some questions for blue eyes here and he can go on his merry way."

Huh?

"And bring back more hunters to kills us. Great plan, Dean."

Dean. Sammy. He didn't know why it never occurred to him that they would have names. Castiel shifts and every single part of the bed squeaks. They all wince. A long silence settled around them until Castiel clears his throat. "Am I to believe that you have no intention of eating me or turning me?"

Because really? Maybe whatever random river disease he's picked up is making him deaf or he's hallucinating.

The vampire laying on the dresser lifts his arm and wrinkles his nose, shooting Castiel possibly the dirtiest look he's ever seen outside of his brothers, "Sorry, but ew."

Dean winks though and his tone is lascivious. "Oh, I'll eat you, baby."

He is definitely hallucinating.

"God, Dean. Can you go five minutes without hitting on someone?"

"Uhhh, time me."

Castiel is sure that the gesture Dean gets for his comment while undoubtedly rude was also about a hundred years out of date.

"Get bent, bat wings," Dean snaps and the other vampire flinches. "Look, I'm Dean and Gigantor over there is my brother Sam, we're serious about not killing you. I just want to know some shit about the..."

Dean asked him something. He asked him something but Castiel is hung up on _my brother Sam_... Brother? These things didn't have brothers. Did they? They hunted in packs, like animals, not like...

"Uh dude? Are you spacing out again? I didn't think you got hit that hard."

Castiel jerks back when he's reached for, hard enough to jerk his wrist but thankfully not to start the tilt a whirl again. The vampire... Dean hisses through his teeth in obvious concern, "Shit, sorry man."

What in the goddamn hell is going on? These things aren't supposed to have brothers or names or... They aren't supposed to apologize.

"It's fine," Castiel shakes his head. "What do you want to know?"

Because they're either going to kill him or they aren't and he's not sure what these... men think he can tell them.

"What were you doing out at Gordon's place tonight?"

"Who's Gordon?"

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me." He sounds exasperated. "He's the leader of that army you ran into."

"We were tracking a missing person. We didn't think there would be that many."

"Gordon likes surprising hunters. That's how his nests are organized. No less than twenty no more than thirty."

"They hunt in packs. You don't?"

Dean smiles, something sweet and blinding, "Most of the time we don't hunt at all. We hit up blood banks, farms, there is the occasional human. But we don't kill and we like consent. Call it a kink."

Sam snorts when Dean says kink before he lifts his hand. "Missing person? Not plural? Because Gordon's men like to do it in groups."

Castiel thinks over what he should tell them. What they could tell him.

"Our brother went missing a little over two weeks ago. He went on a hunt that no one seems to know anything about. We found that a bolthole of ours had been cleared out just to the north of here. Tracked it to that vampire nest."

"What did they take?" Sam asks as Dean rolls his eyes.

"Books mostly," Castiel replies. Him and Gabriel had thought it odd, the place had been ransacked but the only think missing was a steamer trunk full of books and notes. Neither of them could remember much of what had been in there. Some of their fathers old journals, a set of Latin encyclopedias that Castiel had drawn all over when he was young.

He watches the vampires exchange a look. Apparently they didn't think it sounded normal either.

"So your brother went missing and then a bunch of your books got stolen by vampires?" Dean frowns.

"The bolthole had been opened with a key. It was still in the lock and there was only one other person that had it."

Dean sighs and shakes his head, "If Gordon got a hold of a hunter, he turned him. That's one of his favorite things to do."

Castiel closes his eyes because they discussed that. Of course they did, they kept an eye out for a vampire with their brothers face but that didn't explain...

"It smelled like sulfur," he says hesitantly, because if he were saying this to hunters, had said this to hunters and they'd laughed at him. Demons were gone, locked away, a myth that was actually a myth now.

He doesn't get that reaction.

Sam sits up suddenly and Dean goes pale.

"You think it's a demon?" Sam asks and he looks almost... panicked. "Just sulfur doesn't mean demon."

"We got a voice mail. The only words we could make out on it are in old Latin, demonic."

Sam is up and pacing now, like an animal in a cage. Dean hasn't moved. Whatever air of flippancy has been sucked out of the room.

"Well," Sam snaps. "What did it say?"

Castiel repeats what he can remember, he's fucking up the pronunciation and Gabriel would laugh at him but his eyes are on Sam who has his eyes closed.

"They're using the Byzantine word for 'answers' and with the alliteration..." the vampire runs his hands through his hair before his eyes snap open, "Do you have the voice mail with you?"

Castiel shakes his head and Sam takes a step towards him, "Where is it?"

It's the first time he's felt threatened since he woke up. Sam is _big_. "It's on my brother's phone."

"Where's you brother?" Another step and Castiel can feel himself scooting up the bed.

"I don't know!"

"Sammy!" Dean snaps "Take a walk or something, shit."

Sam freezes and all the frantic energy just seems to bleed out of him. "Sorry," he breathes and rolls his shoulder as he quickly crosses the room and Castiel can hear a door slam after he disappears.

"You two don't really like demons do you?" Castiel keeps his voice from wavering but he's breathing hard and he can taste the adrenaline in his mouth.

"We've been looking for one for almost two hundred years. It killed my mother, yes, I had a mother, and my father went missing a century ago on the things trail. That cute little story you hunters tell yourself about Campbell banishing all the demons. That's the fairytale. They're still here, they're just quieter, less reckless." Dean stands, slowly, gracefully. He moves like a predator, no movement is wasted and for the first time Castiel wonders just how old he is. "You hunters have a lot of ego. But I hate to break it to you. You're not what we're afraid of at all."

Castiel levels his gaze. "I don't think anything is going to be afraid of me like this."

The gambit works and Dean's face twists into sudden happiness, the grin is... beautiful.

"Man, what the hell is up with those!?"

"They're not mine," Castiel frowns.

"Sure, princess. Let's find you some big boy pants."

 

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Sam was pretty sure that this night could not go from bad to worse unless an entire crew of hunters with pitchforks and torches showed up. Apparently the world has once again decided to prove him wrong. There was a demon in the area, maybe. He was making circuits around the house trying to ignore the burning in his back, the burning in his blood. He knew those words, he hears them in his sleep, he hears them at the breaking of the dawn.

The demon singsonging like it's a children's rhyme.

 _I call to my Master and he answers in my voice, I look upon this world and He sees through my eyes, I shed the blood of this world and it flows into my Masters mouth..._

He crouches in the grass and squeezes his eyes shut. Great, now _he's_ gonna throw up. Maybe he should get some of the blood bags out of the car. Dean's gonna do well, whatever the hell he brought the hunter back to do and they could get out of here. Find the brother. Find the phone...

There's the barest sound of something moving and Sam swallows, tilting his head a fraction of an inch. Smells like a human, hint of blood, hint of fear, and a little bit of... chocolate? Sam's moving even before he hears the ratcheting click of the crossbow. It barely misses him so he's got to give some credit to the shooter, but not enough because there's only one of him and Sam moves a whole lot faster than it looks like he should.

He hears the, "Son of a bitch!" before he crashes into the hunter from behind, yep, definitely chocolate.

There's a scuffle but Sam has the advantage of being stronger and in this case way bigger. He's got the hunter's arms locked up behind his back and is now getting called some very choice names as well as getting accused of doing all sorts of things to Castiel. He almost loses him as he makes his way to the car and gets stabbed with something...

"Ow! Fuck!" Sam hisses as he pops the trunk and digs through it with one arm still locked around the squirmy human. There we go, zip ties in a bag next to the cooler. It takes him way too much time and straddling to tie the hunters arms together and then his legs when he gets kneed in stomach.

They're both panting when he's done and he's half on top of the hunter and his side burns from whatever the hell is sticking out of him. Fuck his life.

"You must be Gabriel," he gets out and the cussing trails off with a "Huh?"

He stands up, pulling the hunter up with him by his waistband at the same time he yanks the knife out of his side. Damn it, he liked that shirt. He smells the blade and chuckles, "Dead man's blood, cute, but I'm not the right species for that to work."

"You're shitting me." The other man spits and now Sam can recognize him from the picture, same brown hair and hazel eyes. "I must have missed that on the discovery channel."

"We get a whole week of programming in march," Sam snaps back as he makes his way up to the house.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Okay, in all the scenarios that Gabriel played out in his head this was not at all one of them. First of all losing track of the vampire in the brush, total rookie mistake. Second? Who the fuck keeps zip ties in their car!? Serial killers and vampires. That's who. Also, getting carried around like a bag of flour, not flattering at all. He's about to start cussing again because he did not expect all his options to get cut off that quickly when he gets tossed, _tossed_ , like he weighs as much as a kitten onto a bed that sounds like it's one grope session away from collapsing. He grunts and hears;

"If this is my rescue, I give it a two."

"Fuck you," he mumbles into a mattress that, oh God, he doesn't want to know what's on this mattress because he's hog tied like Sunday dinner and can't move his face.

God damn at least Cas is alive. He peers up at his brother who's handcuffed in his underwear and looks a little ragged around the edges but he's whole and not undead or any sort of in between.

"Please tell me you brought your phone."

He's a second away from asking how that is a relevant fucking question in their current state when hello! Vampire hand in his pants! The freaking colossus is manhandling him all over the mattress and trying to get into his pockets.

"Inappropriate touching!" Gabriel yells in a tone that is so not a squeal. He tries to kick out but he gets lifted up like a fish by his ankles and the thing gets his phone out of his pants. "You owe me a drink you fucking handsy pervert!"

"You wish," the vampire mutters, dropping him so he bounces.

"What the hell is going on up there?" Someone yells from inside whatever creaky ass hell house they've landed in.

"I found his brother!" yells the goliath as he starts pressing buttons on a phone that is most definitely not his.

A door opens and Gabriel isn't facing the right way to see who it is but he hears the soft whump of fabric and Castiel shifts. "Thank you, Dean."

What in the goddamn hell is going on?

"What's your voice mail password?"

"Fuck you," he says at the same time Castiel chirps;

"4482."

Gabriel wriggles around on the bed until he can see his little brother. "What the fuck? It's been three hours and you have Stockholm syndrome already?"

It's worth the 'oh God you are a complete embarrassment to me' look he gets as his brother is yanking up a pair of flannel sleep pants over his skinny ass.

"And you're wearing their clothes?"

"I jumped in a river," Castiel sighs.

"Why the hell did you do that for?"

"The same reason you started playing with explosives."

"Quiet, ladies." Someone snaps and Gabriel rolls over to tell them to go rightly fuck themselves but his little brother's hand is over his mouth.

He'd lick it but then Cas would just wipe it off on his own face. He should have never taught him that trick. So he tilts his head back so he can watch the ginormotron and a shorter guy in a leather jacket huddle next to his phone with their eyes closed. Then it catches up with him. Voice mail. They're listening to Michael's voice mail. What the hell? He lifts his head and growls at Cas who just shushes him. Gabriel gets shushed because Cas has that severe look he gets when he's not fucking around.

Facts, facts, two vampires. Different species? Whatever that fucking meant. Listening to his phone. Had Cas told them about Michael? Why the hell are they not dead? He shakes his head and then bites the edge of Cas' hand and gets smacked in the head for his efforts.

"Bitch!" He hisses.

"Jerk." Cas whispers.

"What was that at the end? Replay it." Gabriel looks up as his phone gets abused. Honestly.

"Sounded like a PA system." Leather jacket says and Gabriel blinks.

He'd listened to that message like eight hundred times and didn't hear any PA system.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" He snaps. "What PA system?"

He gets shushed again. Alright, Cas is okay but fucking creatures of the night do not shush him. This sucks and he doesn't want to get killed while hog tied in a smelly house on a mattress that is probably giving him bed bugs right now. Maybe they can escape while the vampires are too busy Hardy Boys-ing up his phone.

Now they're talking in some old dead language but he can tell from the look Cas has that thankfully at least someone knows what the hell is going on.

"Or some sort of industrial complex," Cas says suddenly and gets a look like the undead finally remembered that they were in the room. Cas rolls his shoulder, "Somewhere with an outside yard would use a system like that."

"Since when do you know Greek?" Leather jacket snaps.

"Since I'm minoring in linguistics," Castiel gives as good as he gets and Gabriel grins from upside down on the bed.

"Nerd," The vampire snaps and tosses Gabriel's phone on the bed. "That was enlightening. Do me a favor stay away from vampires nests unless you do a headcount from now on?"

"Where are you going?" Castiel yells as the vampires as they gather some things, a duffel bag, a book, "What the hell are you!?"

"They used to call us strix," Godzilla says and then holds up Gabriel's knife. "I'm keeping this."

"Jackass!" Gabriel shouts but it's half hearted.

They're leaving. They're fucking leaving. They're fucking leaving them alive.

Leather jacket pauses in the doorway, stares, just long enough for it to be something... that Gabriel can't quite decipher upside down with all the circulation cut off from his arms. But then they're gone. Dawn is coming and when he hears the grumbling sound of a car engine Gabriel lets out a long breath he didn't know he was holding.

"So, what the fuck was that all about?" He says to Castiel and to no one in particular because tonight has been strange and in their line of work that was saying something.

"They know what has Michael," Cas breathes and Gabriel squeezes his eyes shut because _shit_.

After a moment he blows his bangs out of his face. "I don't suppose they left you with your knife?"

Cas tilts his head. "I don't suppose you still have those paper clips in the lining of your jacket?"

"Right," Gabriel says wriggling over onto his side so Cas can get at them.

Freedom first, then planning.

 

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Castiel hurries after Gabriel, he's in Dean's pants and Gabriel's jacket and his boots are squishy. Gabriel is ranting.

"I don't care if they didn't kill us. It is suicidal to try and find them again. I doubt they'll be happy to see us a second time. Not to mention... who the fuck's lair were we in?"

"Gordon," Castiel supplies.

"Gordon, right. I know I didn't kill every vamp that was there. We kicked a hornets nest tonight, bro, and some of those things have our scent. I, for one, do not want to be in town when they decide to attack us en mass."

Castiel waits for Gabriel to dig around in the bushes and come back with his crossbow. "And another thing. What the hell was with leather jacket back there giving you the moon eyes?"

"I..." Castiel hadn't seen any moon anything but Dean had stopped, he'd stared like it was the last they were ever going to see each other and that was just crazy. He didn't even know him. "I'm not sure what you're referring to."

Gabriel snorts. "What I want to know is why have no hunters ever noticed that there are different species of vampires? Though more likely I'm betting those two we're lying through their ample and pointy teeth."

"They could be our only chance to find Michael," Castiel says softly.

"Or our only chance to be _dinner_ ," Gabriel snaps. "They're monsters, Cas."

"Monsters know other monsters," Castiel frowns.

Gabriel just shakes his head. "Get in the car. We'll talk while we drive."

Castiel is just as jumpy as Gabriel as they tear through the blacktop on their way to town. "How did you find me anyway?"

"Hacked a traffic cam," Gabriel frowns. "There were tire tracks and the only car in the area at the time turned out to be pretty distinctive."

Castiel can't remember anything but a flash of black metal and the feeling of being carried now that he thinks about it. They had so many chances to kill him. "Why do you think they let us go?"

"Maybe it's their good deed for the next decade. Fucked if I know," Gabriel snaps, looking in the rear view mirror at the nothing that's following them. "Anyway, what's this about an 'industrial complex'?"

"They heard something in the voice mail, I think it may have been beyond our hearing." Castiel waits as Gabriel cusses before he starts again, "It was a shift change announcement for a place that sounded like it started with a D and they could hear birds, loons. So somewhere outdoors by water."

"A shipyard or a lumberyard," Gabriel frowns as Castiel racks his brain.

"Or a paper plant," Castiel breathes as he remembers heading into town, a paper plant by the river with a faded sign.

"Dawson's?" Gabriel frowns. "What are the odds?"

"It's only a few miles out of town and if that vampire, Gordon is a big enough name he might have ties to it."

"You up for a stakeout?" Gabriel asks.

"Do I have a choice?" Castiel snaps as he reaches around to grab his netbook out of the backseat.

He knows Gabriel waited until he was off balance to flip that U turn.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

"It's quiet. Too quiet," Gabriel says looking across at the Dawson's Paper Plant.

Cas makes a strangled noise. "I hate you. I really really hate you."

"Aw, I'm wounded. Here I thought I was your favorite brother," Gabriel smirks without looking over at his baby brother.

"If you say 'I've got a bad feeling about this', I'm walking back to town," Cas tells him, without denying the favorite brother part.

They'd never say it in front of Michael, but its true. Gabriel the one that looked after Cas. The one who held him when he had nightmares, taught him how to tie his shoes, wiped his tears and bandaged his hurts. Michael was a stern frown and a sterner voice. The easy affection and smile wearing away into nothing after their parents never came back for them. Sometimes Gabriel wondered what Michael would have become if he hadn't had to be a mother and a father and a hunter all before the age of sixteen. He usually tries to not think about it.

After a moment he hears Cas 'hmm'. "Do you actually see any people?"

No, he doesn't. The place looks deserted. There weren't a lot of cars in the parking lot and the little guard station up at front had been empty since they'd got there. Maybe they only had night shifts? Gabriel frowns around the twizzler in his mouth before he pops the car door and jumps out, grinning as Cas starts yelling at him. He'd missed that sound.

"What the hell are we doing?" Cas hisses at him later as he rifles through the guard station.

"We're looking for clues, like any good Scooby Doo fan. If something's up I wanna find out now before I fall asleep in the car," He pushes open a side door which isn't locked at all and listens to Cas' grumbling sigh as he follows him.

"So does that make you Shaggy or Scooby?" Cas mutters.

Gabriel grins over his shoulder. "I'm the pretty one. You're Scrappy Doo."

"So getting that DNA test," Cas frowns as he adjusts the crossbow over his shoulder.

Gabriel grins as they make their way down echoing hallways, peering into empty offices and the silent factory floor. They find the managers office and figure out that the last time anyone checked in was...

"The day before Halloween," Cas frowns. "The day you got the voice mail."

"Well, damn," Gabriel hisses. "Why the hell hasn't anyone noticed that this place has been abandoned? Did they just fire everyone or kill them? Because there is a distinct lack of bodies here."

"Or they turned them," Castiel breathes, leaning against the desk.

Gabriel shudders, because fuck, that's messed up. But there had been enough vamps in Gordon's nest to make that a possibility.

"Let's take another quick look around and then get the hell out of here." He snaps pushing away from the desk.

It's in the basement that they find it. It's always the basement. But after a quick skim, Cas finds a door that looks like it's been sealed in blood with sigils on it proclaiming it a 'temple'. They had rock, paper, scissored to see who opened it after being almost completely certain that it wasn't magic or anything.

"You always pick rock," Castiel frowns at him and then takes several, unnecessary, steps back down the hallway before he gestures with the crossbow. "Well, come on. Don't be a wuss."

Gabriel will never live that sentence down after that yeti in Colorado.

He opens the door, after he squeezes his eyes closed and hopes that he doesn't get disintegrated or turned into a sea turtle or anything. Nothing happens, well, nothing but the smell. He hears Cas gag behind him and Gabriel swallows as he opens his eyes.

They didn't turn the paper plant staff.

The bodies are arranged in a ring, overlapping each other and covered in blood, and something that smelled like wet rotten leaves. He doesn't miss the undertone of sulfur in the air as he slowly slides in, taking in the sigils that mark every surface of the room, painted over the chairs and light fixtures, casting the entire place in a flickering sort of half light.

"I am estimating I have less than five minutes before I actually throw up," Castiel says miserably behind him.

"Well, don't puke on any sigils, I'm not sure what you would summon."

Castiel mumbles something probably nerdy and informed at him from behind his hand as he peers at the sigils, hopefully using that giant brain of his to figure out what the hell this is. Gabriel moves around the perimeter, there's a section of wall in the corner that's blank, still pristine and he's so intent on it that he freezes when he half steps on something that makes a crunch. He takes a breath and says a quick prayer to anyone that it's not bones or bugs or a rat and quickly looks down.

It's Michael's cell phone.

What's left of it anyway. He crouches down and picks up the biggest piece, turning it over in his fingers until... something crushed this with their bare hand. He can make out the finger marks wrapping around it. Crushed and then dropped, probably when the demon figured out that Michael or someone had made a call. Shit.

"Is that...?" Castiel breathes behind him and just swallows when Gabriel nods.

"Michael isn't part of the ring," Castiel gets out. "It's a tribute to... something. I can't make it out. All the symbols translate to king or lord or master, there isn't a name."

"Maybe we don't want to know it's name," Gabriel says as he stands, trying to decide if he should pocket the ruined phone, if this was the closest he was going to get to his brother.

He lets the phone drop to the floor as Cas pushes past him and leans in to inspect the blank corner.

"Something was bolted here, scuff marks, and here looks like a chain scraped against it," Castiel frowns and Gabriel watches him goes all CSI in that way he's so good at, tracing marks in the walls with his fingers before he stops and kneels, frowning.

"What is it?" Gabriel frowns as his brother tilts his head in that 'important thinky time' way.

"This grate has been bent aside, I think I can make out something under it. Give me your flashlight."

Gabriel rolls his eyes but hands over the mag-light. There's a few more minute of Cas humming and looking before he says, "Something's written down here, and there's a knife."

Gabriel is off to get a crowbar before Cas can say it.

It takes them almost an hour to get the grate moved aside, and they're both sweating and out of breath by the time they're done. He pulls the knife out as Cas goes over what's written down there and Gabriel tries to not point out that Cas totally hasn't thrown up yet.

Instead he looks at the knife and finds himself tilting his head. It's long, serrated, with a curved handle. Worn but very well kept and along the blade are the most careful tiny symbols. They're colder than the metal when he skims his fingers along them, he can almost feel them hum. He thinks he hears Cas says something but as he presses his fingers along them he gets a flash of... comfort, protection, safety. This is a hunters knife. This knife saves lives.

"Gabriel!"

"What?" He blinks as Castiel stares at him.

"You zoned out. What's with the knife?" Castiel frowns as Gabriel hands it over.

"It's got some symbols on it. Writing?"

"Looks like GPS coordinates, I can't be sure without a computer. There's also what looks like a snake eating its own tail but..." Gabriel waits to see if Cas gets the same feelings he did. Only Castiel is shaking his head. "These letter shouldn't exist."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gabriel sighs, he feels a headache creeping up on him.

"This is, at least I think it is, Enochian."

"The magical first language? The language of the birds and God and angels?"

"Yeah," Cas says and there's no sarcasm at all in his voice.

"Shit." Gabriel frowns, "Come on. We have to deal with these bodies."

It seems to take forever to dispose of the bodies and the smell of burning flesh isn't going to leave his nose for weeks, but the moment they get back to the hummer Cas is on his laptop.

"Looking up the symbols?" Gabriel asks tiredly. His head is killing him and he feels like he could sleep for a week.

Cas shakes his head. "No, I'm looking up Strix."

That so wasn't the answer he expected. "And you're doing that instead of doing something that might help us find Michael because?"

"I think those vampires can help us," Cas says evenly.

"Are you nuts?" Because really that _insane._ They escaped them once and Gabriel doesn't want to tempt fate, he's fucking tired and he can't understand why Cas can't let this go.

Cas shakes his head again. "They were interested in message remember?"

Gabriel nods. Cas does have a point there, they wouldn't have thought to look here without the info dropped by the vamps.

"I think they're looking for someone too. Dean said their father went missing." Cas says, eyes still on the screen. "Remember the holes in the wall? Where something was bolted down? The marks left behind looks like it was attached to something moving, a someone, not a something. It was also meant to hold someone powerful... someone with more strength than Michael."

Gabriel thumps his head against the steering wheel. "A vampire."

Cas nods slowly. "They called themselves Strix. It's a Ancient Roman name for _vampire like_ creatures. There's nothing really solid on them other than they nurse their young."

"Which implies they have young," Gabriel grumbles. He doesn't like where this is heading. Not at all.

"It might refer to the process of making a new vampire. Which would support their claim that they're different. From what they said they implied that they have family relationships. They make connections that other vampires might not." Cas muses. He's got his research face on and Gabriel knows he can go on for hours if he lets him.

"Fascinating. Really. I'm mesmerized by this information," Gabriel deadpans. "I don't like the idea of trusting vamps, but its a lead. They've got to bedded down someplace for the day. We just need to find where."

Cas nods. "It should be easy considering the few motels in this town, and you know what their car looks like so it should narrow things down."

"At this point I'd like to find a motel and sleep. It's been a hell of a night." His not sure how much sleep he will get after the sight in the paper plant.

"We should rest and then..." Castiel trails off, his fingers tapping against the side of his laptop.

"Are you sure about this, Cas?" Gabriel asks, because he has to, because sometimes all Cas sees is numbers and charts and forgets about the thing that will tear his throat out. "About finding them?"

Castiel just frowns and his eyes fall to his duffel in the foot well of the car. "I think that knife and those numbers were meant for them. We should tell them."

"You think if they found Michael they'd come tell us?" Gabriel deadpans, because really...

"I don't know." Cas shakes his head.

That's the gist of it. They don't really know. Everything they thought they knew is starting to crumble around the edges and...

"Crazier things have happened," Gabriel finally says, starting the car and heading back into town.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Dean is having pretty much the best dream ever. It's right up there with the thirty Persian virgins dream and that one with the whipped cream. He's got an armful of glorious giggling blond and she's got pretty much the bluest eyes he's ever seen. Brilliant blue, like a summer sky after a storm kind of blue and... It's not a blond, it's the hunter, Castiel, and Dean can smell him everywhere, lost in those eyes. He knows it's a dream and he needs to wake up because this is... The hunter is smiling, he's not afraid at all, even with Dean pressing him into the mattress. Not even when Dean bends his neck and licks a long line across the hunters throat, grinning at the gasp that escapes the man beneath him. Behind him... Huh?

Dean blinks open his eyes and he's staring at the bathroom door of the motel room. His arm's all slobbery where he's laying on it and his gigantic cuddle slut of a brother has rolled over and is smashing him up against the door. Brilliant, become a vampire, kids, it's so glamorous. It takes him about a minute of growling and flailing to get Sam to roll over and this is why they don't share a bed, because Dean ends up smothered and Sam is... still out like a light. Heavy sleeping bastard.

It's not quite sundown yet, Dean can feel it, like a tingle in the back of his neck. He isn't sure what woke him up. It's noisy, like it always is in the city; people, cars, TV's and electronic buzzing. The fucking motel room had a wide front window and they didn't have enough cardboard and duct tape to deal with it so they had ended up dragging the mattress into the thankfully windowless bathroom. Only now that meant he was trapped in here with Sam and...

Someone is moving in the motel room. Dean freezes. Maid. It had to be the maid because that was the only explanation and he almost has himself convinced of that when he very distinctly hears the words, "Castiel, you are a fucking douche-nozzle."

Oh shit, it's the hunters.

The fucking hunters that they obviously should have killed are in their motel room and the fucking bathroom doesn't have any windows and... Dean smells bacon.

He closes his eyes because his sense of self preservation should not be able to be overridden by bacon and curiosity.

Except now he's trying to peer under the bathroom door and listen and kick the mattress so hopefully his brother will wake up before someone slams open the door with holy water and crossbows and...

He can't see shit but he can hear the sound of a pan scraping, someone cooking and words.

"I don't understand the issue. It's simply logical to..."

"Logical! Cas! You have completely fucked my farm into the ground!"

What?

"Selena the dancer would not have made a good helpmate for a farmer of your caliber and considering the size of your lands..."

"Who the hell have you been wooing then?! And who the fuck says 'helpmate'? What century did you fall out of... No. No, you did not get seven hearts with the homely little rancher girl, Cas, you bastard."

Dean has heard some weird shit in his long life but he absolutely has no idea what the hell is going on. This sure as hell doesn't sound like some secret hunter code. He hears Sam grunt as he kicks him harder and Dean hisses at him, "Get up! The hunters are out there!"

He gets a grumble for his troubles and that's it, he's gonna get up and turn the shower on cold and... He's scuffling to peer under door again when the light behind the door shifts and he hears, "I know you're awake! So lets cut the crap out!"

Fuck.

Now Sam lifts his head.

"Did someone just...?"

"The fucking hunters are using our stove."

The look on Sam's face is priceless. It's a scramble between fear, confusion, and that muzzy half asleep look he still has. Dean swallows and stands up, cracking the bathroom door slightly. The curtains are still closed and their duffles are where they left them. He sees Gabriel first, sprawled out on the couch across the room glaring balefully at some hand held gaming thing, Dean can tell from the way he's slouching that he's got a weapon on him, but not what.

His gaze drifts to Castiel who is standing at the tiny kitchenette in the corner, a grocery bag sitting on the counter, poking at a pan. It looks like he's showered and changed and Dean knows he's trying to tilt his head to scent him but Sam is all panicked hissing behind him. He's about to tell his brother to shut up when Gabriel looks over at the bathroom door and rolls his eyes, "Come on! You two are probably more armed than we are."

Dean slides out of the bathroom at that challenge, trying to ignore the fact that Sam is totally hiding behind him. Castiel looks up, the barest of glances before his eyes are back on the pan in front of him. Both of them smell nervous, but they're holding their ground.

"So what? You needed to use our stove?" Dean frowns because if the hunters aren't there to kill them then something is definitely wrong.

"You two did take the last kitchenette, I asked when we checked in," Castiel snarks at him and Dean's grinning before he notices.

Sam's not so taken. "What are you doing here?" he demands.

Gabriel tilts his head to the side. "We think we found something of yours. Or that belongs to someone you know."

Dean goes still and scents the air trying to judge them by that alone.

"I'll trade Gigantantor over there," Gabriel goes on, flipping a familiar blade over in his his hand. "He gives me back mine and you can have this."

Castiel shoots his brother a dirty look. "Gabriel!"

"Fairs, fair," Gabriel points out.

Sam's eyes are fixed on Dean and he knows his little brother is looking to him to make the call. Dean sighs. "Give him his knife back, Sam."

Sam grumbles but dig the knife out and tosses it on the bed. "Now give us dad's knife," Sam demands.

Dean winces, way to give it away how important it is, Sammy. He half expects the hunter to go back on his word, instead Gabriel gives the knife to Castiel who walks it over to Dean.

"We found this in the paper mill outside down," Castiel explains.

Dean's eyes are fixed on the blade and the message. He swallows hard. Azazel. Yellow Eyes.

Sam crowds up behind him, looking as well. He makes a sound in the back of his throat like he's going to be sick. "Did you look up the GPS coordinates?" Sam manages to ask.

"We figured we'd leave that to you," Gabriel comments.

Sam snatches the blade from Dean's fingers and busies himself pulling out his laptop. "I've got a feeling I know where these will lead," Sam says, not sounding hopeful.

Dean groans. "If they lead back to Gordon's ---"

Castiel makes a disgusted noise as well, and Dean had forgotten the hunter was so close. He smells clean now, but just as good. Something in his eyes must show that thought because Castiel backs away.

 

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Sam wants to scream at something or someone. Gordon's lair, so far, is empty. More than just empty, cleared out.

"I don't like this," Sam mutters, scenting the air again. There's a smell that tugs at something in his head. But it's not the scent of vampire. That scent is almost completely obliterated.

"So you've said," Dean snips back.

Gabriel clears his throat. "I believe the line is 'I've got a bad feeling about this'," he points out.

Sam can't help but smile. "Okay, that too."

Castiel shakes his head. "I don't like how deep we're going," he says. "What if it's a trap."

Sam's been worrying about that too, but... "The place looks too empty," he finally says. "I mean they even clear they're scents."

Dean frowns then sniffs the air. "Shit, your right."

What the hell has Dean been scenting? "Do you smell that odder? Like some kind of herbs, it's faint, but there. I just can't place it."

Gabriel makes a humming noise. "Describe it."

Sam does his best to describe the scent that's been bugging him the deeper they go.

Suddenly Dean's head jerks to the right. "Blood, I smell blood."

Dean's always had a better sense of smell when it came to blood then Sam. He thinks it's the fact Dean's older than him. Dad could smell all sorts of thing neither him nor Dean could. "What direction," Sam asks looking down the twisting tunnels.

"The right," Dean says.

They follow Dean in silence down the twisting turning passage ways. When Sam gets a wiff of it he almost gags. "Sulfur," he says trying to keep his cool. "There's the smell of sulfur mixed with the blood."

Sam is aware of Gabriel's eyes on him. It unnerves him.

"We should be careful," Castiel says softly. "We don't know --"

They turn a corner and find themselves in a large room.

A large room with a circle of dead bodies.

Bodies drained of blood. The off smell is vampire blood mixed with ritual herbs and the faint odder of sulfur.

Sam has to cover his mouth and nose with his hand. The smell of sulfur is what's getting to him. Ever since....ever since...

Dean looks at him worriedly, but keeps his mouth shut in front of the hunters.

"It's like the ring in the paper mill," Gabriel tells them.

"Almost exactly," Castiel agrees.

"Shit," Dean swears. "Gordon's working with a fucking demon."


	2. Chapter 2

ϞϟϠϡϗ

"We need some ground rules if we're going to work together," Dean says when they get back to the motel.

They all have retreated pretty much to different sides of the room. Dean's eyes keep going back to Cas. Who smells delicious. Shit, he's got to stop thinking about that.

"What sort of rules?" Gabriel asks, folding his arms across his chest.

Dean leans against the wall in a show of unconcern. "No staking people while they sleep, should be rule one."

Gabriel rolls his eyes. "Should I avoid eating garlic too?"

Sam snorts.

"I really want to know who started that damn rumor," Dean mutters. "I'm just saying we should have some...guidelines or shit."

"What like no littering? No swimming? No smoking?" Garbriel snarks.

Cas frowns. "I thought you quit smoking?"

"I did!" Gabriel protests. "I think the only rules we need are don't kill us and we won't kill you."

Dean grits his teeth in frustration. He's trying to do this right, he's trying to be reasonable. "How about no cock-blocking."

Garbriel gives him a tight grin. "Does that include no fang blocking?"

Dean almost looses his tempter at that. Stupid ignorant hunter. They don't need them. Who the hell cares what Cas smells like, he doesn't have to put up with --

"That shouldn't be a problem unless you have an objecting to us snacking on cow," Sam points out calmly. "If we drink from humans they're always willing."

Gabriel's eyes rest of Sam and Dean does not like the appraising way he looks Sam over. "I might be jealous."

Sam laughs. "We'll call that a good exception."

Gabriel smiles warmly at him and, oh, this is just great. Sam's the one getting along with one of the hunters.

"I think what Dean means is that we need some basic structure for working together," Cas puts in, giving Dean a sympathic look.

Dean nods and shoots Cas a grateful look. "Pretty, much. Like me and Sam are pretty useless during the day. So we mostly do night hunts -- and yes I mean the same sort of hunts you guys do."

"No one said otherwise," Cas assures him.

Dean can't help smiling. "Okay," he says.

Gabriel sighs. "We do most of our work at night anyways," he says. "And we do have the same goal in mind."

"Right," Dean agrees.

He's not going to tell them that his father takes priority over their brother.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Gabriel rolls his sucker around on his tongue, watching Sam over the top of the vampire's laptop. Sam keeps glancing up at him, lips parting slightly when Gabriel hollows his cheeks. This thing started as a game to amuse himself, but over the last week it's more than just to amuse himself. Because damn he loves the reactions he can pull out of the younger vampire.

And he loves how it winds up Dean. The elder vampire's nostrils will flare and he'll look up glaring daggers at Gabriel. Not that Deano has much room to talk or glare, since if he gets any closer to Cas, he'll be straddling his lap. Gabriel might have to stab Dean if that happens though.

Gabriel drags his foot up the inside of Sam's leg relishing the way the muscles tightened and relaxed under the motion. Sam's eyes dart up, turning from greenish brown to white in a heart beat, before Sam quickly looks away and closes his eyes. Jesus, he's not sure if that's hot or terrifying. Maybe both.

Dean looks up from cleaning one of his guns -- he's a pro at it, not that he'll let a vampire near his guns.

"I need to get a book from the Hummer," Cas suddenly declares sitting aside his laptop. Cas brought in all the books he said he'd need so Gabriel knows that's bullshit.

Gabriel watches Cas' eyes dart over towards Dean. The quick darting glance back Dean goes and how the vampire shifts just a bit closer. "I'll go with you," Dean says sitting aside his gun. "I need some air."

Sam leans back in his chair. "Bring in some supplies if we're bunking in the bathroom."

Dean makes a face. "I'd rather sleep in a mine with Wendigos."

"You would not," Sam grumbles making a particular disgusted face at Dean. "And if you want to sleep under a bed or find some abandoned house that smells like wet dog or worse be my guest."

Dean opens his mouth, then Cas' brushes by him and he closes it with a snap. "Whatever man," Dean says shaking his head. He follows Cas outside like he attached to a leash.

Sam sighs softly and closes his laptop with a soft click. "Dean's got it bad."

"What?" Gabriel asks suspiciously. He taps the round shape of the sucker against his bottom lip.

Sam's eyes are glued to the sucker. "For Castiel. He... likes him."

"Shit," Gabriel swears, jolting to his feet. Yeah, likes him alright for a late night snack and Gabriel just fucking sat there...

"No, no," Sam tells him, getting to his feet. He puts his hands on Gabriel's shoulders. "Not like eating like. It's complicated, but I swear to you, he's not going to hurt Cas."

Gabriel glares up at Sam. "How complicated?"

Sam sighs. "It just is. It's... you aren't one of us you wouldn't understand." He shifts his weight which brings his body closer to Gabriel's.

Their chests brush and Sam's hands still rest on Gabriel's shoulder, fingers just brushing the skin of his neck. "Try me."

"I can't," Sam says softly, voice dipping slightly.

Suddenly they aren't talking about Dean or Cas or complicated vampire things. Gabriel holds up the bare remains of his sucker. "Wanna try some of this?"

Sam's lips part, his breathing picking up. "What flavor is it?"

Gabriel presses closer, smiling up the long expanse of Sam's torso. "You'll just have to find out." He reaches up and presses the candy to Sam's lips.

Something Sam's eyes flare as his tongue darts out to taste the candy. Then in the space of a heart-beat Sam's kissing Gabriel. The vampire taste like coffee and a trace of the candy that just rested on his lips. He tastes alive. His mouth is a inferno and Gabriel wants to press him against a wall and see if he's that hot everywhere.

The motel room door bangs open and Sam jumps away from him. A faint blush colors Sam's cheeks and Dean glares at Gabriel like he'd been trying to take Sam's virtue or something.

When Dean looks away, focus going to Cas who followed him in, Sam glanced towards Gabriel. His mouth curve slightly upwards in a deviously delicious way.

Gabriel wants more of that. If Sam's the fire then he's got no issue with getting singed around the edges.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

"Bobby's got a hunt for us," Dean says walking back to the picnic table they've got a map spread across.

Gabriel looks up suspiciously. "Whose Bobby?"

Dean comes to stand near Cas and tries to keep the urge to scent him under control. It doesn't help that he hasn't had a chance to eat yet, but the hunters are so squeamish about it and Dean doesn't want to see Cas put off by him.

"And old family friend," Dean tells him. "We can trust him."

"Another vampire?" Gabriel asks in a tone boarding between curiosity and distaste.

Dean wants to scream at him. He's seen the way Gabriel eyes his little brother. He wants to remind Gabriel that Sam's a vampire too.

"Yes, he's a strix," Sam answers. "He's got our back. If there were people closer to this he wouldn't send us that way."

Cas shifts his weight, swaying into Dean's personal space. Dean has to force himself not to stare at Cas' throat. "I thought you liked New Orleans, Gabriel," Cas says. "Besides we need to check in with Dean's contact."

Yeah, they're not going to like it when he tells them _what_ Crowley is, but at least he agrees with the the distaste they'll have. "Orleans is awesome," Dean says. "Spend a decade there a while back."

Sam groans. "Please don't start that story."

Cas leans a little closer. "I'd like to hear about it."

Dean swallows hard. "Maybe later," he's got to get away from Cas before he does something stupid.

Cas frowns slightly. "Are you alright, Dean?" he asks softly, he touches Dean's arm.

"I'm fine," Dean tells him. "I'm just hungry." He shows a bit of fang.

Cas' reaction is instant. He moves back so quickly he hits the table.

And Dean is suddenly furious. Damn hunter. Damn stupid delicious smelling hunter.

"Gabriel," Cas says, his voice sounding off. "We should let Dean and Sam get their dinner."

The older hunter away from Sam who he's been talking quietly with. "Is it that late?"

Sam nods looking embarrassed. Sam's never looked embarrassed about eating before, Dean thinks getting even more pissed. "Sorry, we've been -uhm - making sure we haven't been eating around you guys."

Cas looks at Dean with wide eyes. "Oh," he sounds almost disappointed.

Dean turns on his heel and walks back towards the Impala.

"What is with you?" Sam hisses catching up to him.

"Nothing," Dean snaps back, turning back to look towards the Hummer when he reaches the Impala.

Dean watches Cas climb into the Hummer, his gut churning. "Odi et amo. quare id faciam, fortasse requiris? Nescio, sed fieri sentio et excrucior*," he whispers under his breath to the coming dawn. He can feels Sam's eyes on him and exhales.

Sam doesn't comment, doesn't make a wise ass remark or start in on _bonds_. Dean loves his brother for that.

"C'mon, Sammy, let's bunk down for the day."

Sam sighs. "You're going to have to talk about it sometime."

So much for that. "Talk about what?"

"Dean," Sam says plainly exasperated. "You'll drive yourself crazy. Aren't you even going to try?"

Dean grits his teeth, jaw clenching. "Are we really talking about this? He's human and a hunter. So, uh, no."

Sam snorts. "Wasn't dad human when mom Made him? They had a blood bond --"

"They were already married and we **are not** talking about this. I swear, Sammy, drop it. Cas scent is tempting because he's never had sex, that's it," Dean snaps, shoving Sam towards the Impala. "Now get in the damn car or I'm leaving your ass here."

"I'll just call Gabriel," Sam points out.

And okay, Dean's really fucking happy Sam has some chance at getting some tail, but Sam is incapable at leaving it at that. Sarah, Madison, that bitch Ruby. Sammy couldn't just love'm and leave'm. "You two picked out rings yet?" Dean teases.

Sam makes a bitchface as he climbs in the passenger seat. "Dude, not funny."

"I think it's hysterical."

"Because you're an asshole," Sam grumbles.

"Nah, because I'm awesome."

* I hate and I love. How can I do that, you might ask me? I do not know. But that's what I feel and this is torture.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Dean doesn't look like he's listening and it's pissing Castiel off. So's the humid thick air, and the bugs, and the mud. Mostly the bugs that seem to want to eat him alive. Gabriel and Sam are pouring over a map of the local area that's spread across the hood the Hummer. None of them want to get lost or stuck out in the bayou. Castiel is still trying to get Dean to agree that it _is_ vampires. Well, a type of vampire, and excuse him for still getting used to the idea there are different kinds.

Sam hadn't commented on the delectation, just tightened his jaw and walked away. Gabriel -- he agrees with Castiel, because what else could it be?

"What else could it be? You saw the bodies. What because the victims are kids it can't be vampires? Since when do vampires care where their dinner comes from?" Castiel snaps. Then hisses in a breath. _Shit_. "I didn't mean you --"

"I should have known," Dean's voice is emotionless and it freaks Castiel out a little. More than a little. "I don't know why the hell I thought you were _different_."

Castiel takes a step back and shakes his head. "Vampires are monsters," he says, but it sounds more like Michael, like dad. Dean flinches. "You and Sam are just --"

"We never hurt anyone. None of us did. One or two bad apples but hey no ones perfect ... but you damn _hunters_. Every time someones blood was drained, every time someone had bites on their neck. Didn't matter what else it would most likely be, what the evidence showed -- oh no it was always vampires," Dean snarls, shoving his way into Cas' personal space.

Cas holds his ground. "What about vampires like Gordon?" he shoots back. "Or the vampires that killed those kids?"

"It wasn't vampires!" Dean's eyes go white as he growls. Castiel takes another step back, his heart hammering, his brain suddenly remembering that Dean is something that should be _feared_. "But if you're so sure then how do you know I didn't do this? That Sam didn't do this? We're monsters right?"

But he doesn't want to fear Dean.

"Dean," Castiel says holding his ground again when Dean puts them toe to toe.

Dean smiles bitterly showing off his fangs. "I'm just a monster that doesn't care where he gets his next meal. Maybe I've decided I want you. Want to drink you down until there's nothing left, baby." He tilts his head eying Castiel throat.

Castiel closes his eyes for a moment and takes a risk. Not even a risk because this is _Dean_. This is the vampire that saved him back at Gordon's, that's saved his life since. This man is his friend.

"Then do it," he whispers. He tips his head to the side baring the long curve of his throat to Dean.

"Fuck, Cas, no," Dean hisses and turns his head. "I'm not -- we're not -- that's not what we are."

Castiel reaches out and grabs Dean's wrist. "I know. I'm sorry. I'm just used to -- " he trails off then starts again. "Maybe you're right. We'll do more research before we head out, follow that lead Sam said he found."

Dean's eyes dilate then shift back into green. "Whatever," he mutters but Castiel doesn't miss the gratitude in those eyes.

"You two ladies finished yet?" Gabriel yells over towards them.

Castiel groans but Dean just laughs. "C'mon lets go see what our brothers want."

If Castiel keeps hold of Dean's wrist until they reach the Hummer, well neither of them mention it.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

 

Dean thinks maybe they're all losing a bit of focus, but there are three teenagers safe and one dead Loogaroo, so Dean's feeling pretty good. The amount of booze they've all been drinking might have something to do with that. Dean's sitting on the edge of one of the beds a bottle of Jack dangling from his fingers. He's pressed shoulder to shoulder with Cas, who's loose and warm, his normal scent laced with blood from the kill and whiskey _keep him, keep him_.

Sam's stretched out on the floor, head tipped back against the mattress of the other bed as he laughs at something Gabe said. Sam is shit at holding his liquor and his scent is all contentment. Gabe's looking a little too... carnally at Sam and there's something to his scent... but Dean's going to let it go for now.

"What about Van Helsing?" Cas asks. Some how for God knows what fucked up reason, they're talking about vampire hunters.

"Van Helsing was a fucking bigot," Dean declares and feels Cas' laugh before he hears it.

Gabe snorts and rolls his eyes. "Okay, Deano, what makes Helsing a bigot but Manchester's 'fucking awesome'?"

"Sean's good," Sam slurs. "Doesn't treat us all like monsters."

Gabe makes a soft humming noise. "Because you aren't." He offers his glass to Sam.

Dean ignores how his brother's scent twists as Sam smiles up at Gabe. "Dean went drinkin' with him."

Dean grins. "Did more than drink with him."

Sam makes a noise of disgust. Cas goes oddly stiff beside him, and Dean doesn't like that, doesn't like change in scent. He likes Cas relaxed, leaning his warm weight against Dean. Likes Cas close enough to scent almost straight from his skin. _Shit._

"If Helsing is a bigot what's Count Dracula?" Gabe asks and takes a drink straight from a bottle of bailey's. And Dean will so give him shit about that later. If he remembers.

"Dracula? Kind of a dick. Girls dig a guy with a title though. Ol' Harkness was just pissy Drac dumped him for his wife."

Sam shakes his head even though his eyes are closed. "He's lying."

"I am not," Dean retorts, because can't Sammy let him have a bit of fun?

"Are too."

Cas lets out a soft laugh, he's relaxing back against Dean.

Dean throws a conspiratorial arm over Cas' shoulder. "Sammy's just jealous he didn't meet him."

"Prince Vlad Tepes wasn't called Dracula at all Dean, unless someone was being overly formal. He was a rather elderly vampire that called on mom and dad when he was visiting London. Stop lying to the humans," Sam says with a frown. He's eyes are still closed and he's drunk off his ass, and that's not fucking right.

Cas' fingers slide against Dean's to steal the bottle of Jack. "You both were human once," Cas points out.

Dean rolls his eyes. "Doesn't count. We're still older than you."

"Dean's older than dirt," Sam tells Gabe, bumping his head against Gabe's leg. Gabe's fingers brush the back of Sam's neck. Dean narrows his eyes. He'd know if they were fucking yet and now he's torn between warning the older hunter off or giving him the hurt my baby brother and you're my next meal speech.

He steals back his bottle from Cas who makes a noise of protest. "Dad," Dean says, gesturing with the bottle. "is older than dirt."

"Everyone's dad's are," Cas says, grabbing for the bottle. There's a brief tug of war for it and Cas winds up on his back, with Dean half on top of him. "Share, Dean."

Dean grins down at him, eyes drifting towards his pulse point. He feels Cas' heart beat echo through his own chest. "Nope, mine."

"Get a room," Sam declares. Dean shoots his soon to be dead brother a dirty look, and finds that he's eyes are still closed.

"No molesting my brother in front of me," Gabe scowls.

Dean reluctantly pushes himself up and off of Cas. He shoots Gave a leer. "So can I molest him behind your back?"

"Sammy, mind if I make your brother shorter?" Gabe asks.

Sam, the little traitor, shakes his head. "Go right ahead."

Cas remains on his back grinning up at Dean, his fingers still encircling Dean's wrist. Fuck, he wishes they were somewhere else. Somewhere he could unwrap Cas and show him how good it could be, lose himself in Cas' scent. Make Cas carry his scent.

Yeah, this was getting out of control.

"An' you'll be walking every where, Sammy," Dean points out, trying not to stare at Cas like a hungry predator. He really doesn't want to lose his head to an overprotective elder brother.

"I can drive, Dean," Sam protests.

Cas rubs his thumb over the pulse point of Dean's wrist. The breath stutters in Dean's chest.

"You drive like shit," Dean grumbles. "You'd ruin my baby's transmission."

Gabe laughs. "Don't let Cas drive the Impala then."

"Gabriel," there's a pleading note to Cas' voice.

"There's a reason I don't let Cas drive, Deano," Gabriel says munching on a candy bar. Dean wants to know where he got it and why he isn't sharing. "First time behind the wheel and he hits a fence."

Cas covers his face with his arm. "I hit the werewolf by the fence Gabriel."

"You still hit the fence," Gabe says laughing. "Michael was pissed."

"I was eight and my feet didn't reach the brakes!" Cas protests in a voice that's almost a whine. Dean thinks it's kind of cute.

Sam smiles widely and _shit_ Dean knows what he's going to say. "Dean wrecked his first car."

"It was a model T, that doesn't count," Dean mutters.

Cas starts laughing the bed shaking with the vibration. "Still counts," he agrees.

There's a prickling at the back of Dean's neck and he sighs. "Come on, Sasquatch, time to bunk down for the day."

Sam groans. "That attic smells like wet dog," he complains.

"Rather sleep in the back seat of the Impala?" Dean asks. Sleeping in the car is doable with the tinted windows, hell, sleeping anywhere out of the sun is doable. It just... you don't sleep right. Crawl spaces, attics, and closets were normal bedding areas these days.

Cas' arm is gone from his face and there's this look, like he wants Dean to stay. But that would be trouble. Every line and scent of Cas is trouble for Dean.

Dean forces himself to get up and with a groan Sam pulls himself off the ground.

"You must be flexible," Gabe says with a wink at Sam. "Putting all those long limbs into small spaces."

Sam's grin with flirtatious and coaxing. "Maybe I'll let you find out."

Dean makes a gagging sound. "Please, you're going to make me sick." He shoves Sam towards the door. "We'll meet up tomorrow night. Try not to piss off anything bigger than a car."

"We make no promises," Gabe tells him.

"Speak for yourself," Cas protests. "Sleep well Dean."

Dean pauses and let's him look back at Cas. He's still on his back, shirt rucked up slightly exposing a thin strip of pale skin. Dean swallows hard. "Yeah, you too."

He half shoves Sam out the door. They're getting into the Impala when Sam finally says something. "You want him," he says softly.

"Haven't made a secret about that," Dean says tightly, fingers clenching around the steering wheel.

"You know what I mean, Dean." Sam sounds way too understanding, way to much like he knows what the hell he's talking about.

And he doesn't. This thing with Cas? Just lust. Just wanting something nobody's touched before. Nothing in his blood calls out to Cas'.

"Shut up, Bat Wings."

Sam sighs through he's nose but is silent for the rest of the drive back to the abandoned house.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

They're lead into a private garden behind the grand french quarter mansion. It's pretty and all but Dean's shirt is sticking to his back and he'd rather be inside where there's fricking air conditioning. Crowley and a lovely red head are standing bellow one of the trees which hangs heavy with Spanish moss. Dean crosses his arms, and shoots Sam a glare when he starts snickering. Cas just looks uneasy by Dean's side, and Gabe smells like he wants to kill things.

"Dude knock it off. I didn't come out here to watch you stick your tongue down my ex-girlfriend's throat," Dean grumbles. "You said you had something for us."

"Charming as always, Winchester," Crowley drawls, grinning widely all teeth, and sharp edges, his eyes black.

Dean smiles right back, showing off his fangs. And if Sammy bitches later well Crowley _started_ it.

Anna snorts. "I was never your girlfriend," she points out. "And, you're the one that never called."

"It was two hundred years ago, Anna. There's weren't phone yet," Dean protests. "And you didn't leave a forwarding address."

"Neither did you," Anna reminds him.

"Touche."

Cas makes a soft noise which causes Crowley to look at him.

"Something you'd like to share with the class?" Crowley asks as he arches an eyebrow.

"You're a demon," Cas says in a voice that's half awe, half hatred. The scent coming off of him is chaotic and it pulls at Dean to fix things.

Dean groans, because shit. What did Cas think he and Sam were joking when they said Crowley was a demon?

"Well done, give the hunter a cookie," Crowley applauds.

Anna smacks Crowley lightly on the back of the head. "Don't torment our guests, Crowley. It's not polite."

Crowley's eyes shift as he rolls them. "I'm a demon, woman! Tormenting is what we do."

"Sam says your retired," Gabriel says smoothly, interrupting. There's not a ounce of fear in his scent, but Dean's learned the guy is good at hiding it.

The demon laughs lightly. "Samuel is correct. I have retired in a sense. Or at least retired from what humans would see has a demons primary vocation."

Anna sighs and gestures from them all to sit down at the table that's been set out. "What he means is that the only deals he really makes these days are over board room tables and he only torments by making me watch Lost with him."

"Fine, give away all my secrets you wretched Jezebel," Crowley declares over dramatically, taking a seat beside Anna.

"Such flattery."

Dean just laughs sitting down and making sure Cas on his right side away from Crowley and Anna. "And you left me for him?" He always asks, just to see her roll her eyes. He and Anna, well, they never were all too serious. But they kept each others beds warm for roughly forty years.

"Dean, not everything is about you," Sam points out.

Cas' mouth curves upwards. "Careful, Sam, you'll shatter his fragile ego and I don't have a clean shirt."

Sam snickers way to loudly and Anna snorts in a very unlady like fashion.

"I do believe I like you, Castiel, despite your taste in friends," Crowley chuckles. "I hope you don't mind that I've arranged some dinner for us."

As if on cue, and they probably were, Jonahs and Jacob came out of the house. One carrying a tray of food the other a tray with a bottle of "wine" and three glasses.

"What are they?" Cas asks softly, leaning close to Dean as the two men grew closer.

Dean almost laughs because how could he not know what -- but Cas wouldn't know. Cas is only sitting at this table because he's trusting Dean.

Cas touches Dean's arm before he can speak. "No, wait, I have it. Golems. A form anyways. I expected them to bigger, bulkier, but with the Hebrew letters, it must be."

There's an air of excitement swirling around Cas and Dean can't help but bask in it. Watching Cas research and his eyes and body light up as he finds things has fast turned into one of Dean's favorite things to watch.

"They've served my nest for centuries," Anna cuts in before Dean can speak.

Jacob pours Anna a glass, then Dean and Sam. He already ate, but damn if doesn't smell good. He runs his fingers over the edge of the wine glass as he lets his fangs drop. Anna takes a sip of her glass watching Cas.

"When were they created and how, if you don't mind me asking? I've read differing accounts and I'd be curious to see how the lore matches up with the facts," Cas tells her, sounding a bit breathless. Like he's discovered the most fascinating tome ever.

Dean hears Sam try to convince Gabriel that no the steak isn't people or poison, or poisoned people.

"Pretty and smart. I'm impressed Dean, I like your new boyfriend," Anna tells Dean. "Though really, Castiel, you could do so much better. And hunters and vampires don't make for stable long term relationships."

Cas tilts his head to the side and Dean can't read him. "I'm sorry, but you're mistaken," Cas tells her. "We simply share a common goal."

Dean takes a long drink from his glass. The blood is warm, perfect and smooth. Lambs blood and from the taste clover fed. But the taste falls flat with Cas' scent so close.

He lets Anna and Cas talk, and listens to the playful bickering of Sam and Gabriel. He watches Crowley, who watches him right back.

Finally he gets to his feet with his glass and moves off further into the garden. After a brief moment he can smell Crowley following him.

"And now they men go off to talk," Crowley says coming to a stop just behind Dean. Just far enough away to be outside of Dean's kill zone.

Crowley always was a smart son of bitch. "Cut the crap and tell me what you know," Dean snaps turning to look at the demon.

"And what's in it for me?" Crowley asks.

"I don't throw this at you?" Dean asks holding up his glass.

Crowley tuts. "You never did have any manners. Civilized creatures don't throw blood at others new suits."

"Your suit is black, asshole. Now you gonna tell me or do I have to go ask Anna?" Dean asks in a bored tone. It's a game they play, a way of dealing with each other.

"Leave, her out of this," Crowley hisses, teeth bared, eyes pitch black.

Dean blinks. "The hell?" It takes him a moment to realize that Crowley is deadly serious. "Shit, you do know something."

"No, I called you over here for a dinner party so I could meet your new hunter pets," Crowley snaps. "There is serious work at hand, Winchester. No one is talking. Just hints of rumors."

"That all you can give me?" Dean demands. "You could have just said that over the damn phone. We don't have time for this shit."

Crowley flings his hands up. "Moron. Are you listening to me?" He sighs as if Dean is a terrible burden he must bear and Dean would be insulted if he didn't already kind of hate the guy. "The demon you're looking for is something you do not wish to tangle with. But if you feel suicidal that's your problem."

"I'll keep that in mind, your worry for my safety is touching," Dean says with a snort.

"Maryland," Crowley tells him. "Where you find the demon you'll find your father."

Dean glances back towards were Sam and Anna are talking with Cas and Gabe. "What about Michael Courier?"

Crowley smile is twisted as what little soul Dean might guess the demon has. "Who do you think your demon is wearing?"

"Shit."

"That's one way of putting it. Now I think I'll be returning to my guests," Crowley smiles again and walks back towards the others.

 _Shit_. Dean throws his glass into the colorful mocking flowers. He stands there glaring at the whites and pinks until Cas' scent tugs at him, making him lift his head and look.

"Dean?" Cas asks softly. "Tell me."

"The demon's wearing your brother," Dean tells him.

Cas nods his shoulders slumping. "I feared as much. From what I heard left on Gabriel's cell phone..." '

Dean hangs his head. "I'm sorry."

"Why? This isn't your doing," Cas tells him, sliding his palm up Dean's back. The motion, the touch makes Dean shiver and he doesn't know how Cas keeps slipping into his personal space without Dean noticing.

He rolls his shoulders. "Yeah, I know its just -- " How can he explain that he wants to take care of Cas, that he wants to protect and keep him happy when he doesn't even understand it. "Let's get out of here. We've got a lot of driving to do."

Cas steps closer, their shoulders brushing. "Any particular destination?"

Dean closes his eyes for a moment and nods. "Yeah, Maryland. I've got a hankering for blue crabs."


	3. Chapter 3

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Gabriel climbs back into the Hummer and passes Castiel a cloth wrapped object. There's a tight line to Gabriel's jaw, that been there since the uncomfortable dinner with that demon.

They're hunters they're supposed to kill demons and vampires. Not have dinner with them. Castiel hears Michael disapproving voice in the back of his head. Monsters often wore humans faces, but they were still monsters.

Dean isn't. He reminds himself. Neither is Sam. We've just had our eyes opened.

 _"They'll make you believe just about anything if you let them, Castiel," Michael says, his hands on Castiel's shoulders. "Lying is all they know how to do. Even if they look nice, you can't trust them. Okay?"_

"What is this?" he finally asks, pushing away the memory of Michael's voice.

Gabriel keeps his eyes glued to the road. "Our insurance policy."

Castiel pulls away the cloth wrapping to reveal a colt revolver. "It's a gun, Gabriel."

"It's the Colt. It'll kill anything. Demons." Gabriel fingers tighten so hard on the steering wheel that the leather creaks. "Vampires. Anything."

The Legendary Colt. Thousands of questions crowd Castiel's mind. Foremost being, how the _hell_ Gabriel got it. "You think we'll have to use it on them."

They both know who he means.

"If we do, we do," Gabriel says to the long empty stretch of road in front of them. Castiel thinks of Gabriel's fingers on the back of Sam's neck, of seeing them kissing when they thought he and Dean couldn't see them.

He thinks of Dean's smile.

Castiel closes his eyes and nods.

"Me or Michael ever tell you about dad and Daniel Elkins card games?" Gabriel asks. He's voice is light but it's forced.

Castiel shakes his head. "No, tell me."

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Dean can't stand the weight of Cas stare. It's driving him nuts.

That wary, searching gaze Dean thought they'd gotten past. Where the hell did the Cas that touched his back, pressed against his side, go?

Sam's crouched over his laptop, and Dean bets he's bouncing between researching what the large bird like creature plaguing the local town they've stopped in and trying to figure out what in Maryland could hold such interest for a powerful demon.

Beside the blue crabs.

Gabe's playing his freakin' DS and munching on a candy bar like he's _five_ without a care in the world. Dean's ignoring that Sam and Gabriel are on the same bed.

And Cas, Cas keeps looking up from his own laptop to stare at the back of Dean's head.

Finally he's had enough and he slams down the knife he was sharping. "I'm going out." He grabs his jacket off the back of the chair.

Sam doesn't look up from the screen that illuminates his face. "Be back before sun up."

"Bite me," Dean grumbles.

"Yeah, no." Sam's mouth twitches, but he still doesn't look up.

"Where are you going?" Cas asks, his mouth curving downwards.

Dean jams the Impala's key in his pocket. "What are you my keeper?" He snaps. "I'm going to the bar around the corner. I want a drink."

He flashes his fangs and Cas' frown deepens. "Dean..."

"What?" Dean demands. "You got something to say, hunter?"

Cas' jaw tightens.

"Didn't think so," Dean yanks the door open.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Sam glances up as the door slams shut. "And he calls me a drama queen," he mutters.

"Whatda think, Sammy, more strawberries or cocoa beans?" Gabriel asks, as if Dean hadn't just stormed out of the room. His scent tells a different story, the sour edge that wraps around chocolate and mint.

"Can't you plant both?" Sam asks.

Gabriel snorts. "Not enough room. I don't have the bigger plot of land yet."

"Well if you stopped buying new hats and made your own food..."

Castiel closes his laptop hard. Ah, Sam wondered when he'd react. "Are you two just going to sit there?"

Sam rolls his shoulders. "That was the general plan," he tells the younger hunter.

"You aren't at all worried?" the question is thrown at Gabriel.

Gabriel seems to consider this, and Sam knows that Gabriel _is_ worried. He tenses, he's fast, he's stronger, and if they're going to turn into a threat to his tantrum throwing older brother...

"Should I be worried, Sam?" Gabriel asks turning his head towards Sam. The hot breath against Sam's neck makes him want to close his eyes and savor.

Sam shakes his head instead. "He's just being pissy. If he does any drinking it'll be liquor, farm animals, or consensual."

Gabriel smiles. "See?" He nudges Sam with his elbow. "And I need those hats."

"You do not. Your tiny pixel self does not need five hats that do nothing," Sam points out in exasperation, before looking back at Castiel. "Look, Castiel, don't stress over it. He'll be back before dawn."

Castiel's jaw twitches. "That's not what I'm worried about."

Sam frowns trying to pick through Castiel's scent. "Your trust in my brother is overwhelming."

"It has nothing to do with..." Castiel stops and hisses out through his teeth. He pulls on his boots and gets to his feet. "I'm going after him."

Gabriel snorts. "I don't think he needs a chaperon, baby brother."

Castiel gives him a sour look, and Sam can't help but laugh. That earns him a look as well, but Sam really doesn't care.

"If you're walking to the bar... which you are because you are _not_ taking my girl, take a weapon. Ol' birdface is still out there, remember? I don't feel like hauling your ass out of trouble tonight," Gabriel tells him.

Sam narrows his eyes and watches Castiel's movements as he takes a gun from the duffel at the end of the bed. Gabriel's warning strikes him as a bit _off_ in a way Sam can't place.

Castiel jams the gun in his pocket and leaves the motel room.

"Dean's not going to hurt anyone," Sam says, wishing he didn't feel like he had to. "Least of all Castiel."

Gabriel's hand slides down his leg and squeezes his knee. "It's my job to look after him. He's my brother."

"And Dean's mine," Sam reminds him.

Sam sighs as Gabriel nuzzles his throat affectionately. "Now help me decided what to plant."

"Which gives you a bigger profit?" Sam asks.

Gabriel makes a face. "Nothing I'd want to eat."

ϞϟϠϡϗ

There's only one bar in town.

Castiel's not sure if he's thankful for that or not as he pushes open the door. The Colt is a heavy guilty weight in his inner jacket pocket and he's starting to think this is the worst idea he's had in a while.

Jumping into a river not withstanding.

He doesn't even know why he's here. He's not Dean's keeper. He's not Dean's...

Castiel scans across the room looking for Dean's familiar form. He spots him leaning against the bar talking to a red head that reminds Castiel way too much of Anna.

Probably Dean's type. Something in his clenches along with his jaw.

Dean leans closer to the girl as Castiel watches, whispers something in her ear that makes her laugh. Makes her toss her hair in a way that reveals her pale throat. Right he's here to make sure Dean doesn't do anything stupid or dangerous. Or...

Castiel moves to the far end of the bar and orders a drink. He'll watch, make sure. Warn the girl off if he needs to.

The weight of the colt tugs at him. The girl's pressing up against Dean now, her nails trailing down his back. Castiel wants to pull her hands off him. She doesn't know what she's playing with, what she's tempting.

He looks away and takes a long pull off his beer, then another.

When he looks back, they're not at the bar anymore. He cranes his head around, cursing himself for making such a rookie mistake and taking his eyes of the object of the hunt. Then he spots them on the dance floor.

That is in no way dancing. That's sex standing up. Dean's nuzzling the red-head's neck, his hands resting on her ass. Her hands on his hips.

The girl shouldn't be there, she didn't belong there, she's in danger standing where he should be...

 _Fuck_.

Castiel turns away from the sight of them.

He wants Dean.

He's wanted Dean for... a while.

Since he saw Dean's eyes half-lidded in pleasure as he drank the blood served by Anna's golems.

Since that night of too much liquor and too much press of bodies.

 _Since he smiled at you,_ a traitorous part of his brain whispers.

Castiel finishes his beer and orders another. He should have stayed in the room.

He glances back onto the dance floor, and they're still there. Dean's kissing her throat and she's laughing. Castiel quickly looks away.

This is hell.

"She your girlfriend?" the bartender asks, glancing out at the floor. She's pretty, coffee colored skin, and kind eyes.

Castiel shakes his head. "No." He takes another drink of beer.

She smiles slightly. "Boyfriend?" she asks in a lower voice.

"No," Castiel says, shaking his head again.

"But you wish he was," she tells him.

Castiel looks down at his finger nails.

The woman laughs. "I can't blame you, hun, he's good looking. But I'd be careful with that one. I don't think he's all he seems to be."

"I know what he is," Castiel assures her, his lips curling upwards.

"And what am I?" a familiar voices asks from behind Castiel.

His heart ratchets up a beat.

The woman laughs again. "A horrible flirt and a tease," she informs him before heading off to take care of some other customers.

"Hello, Dean," Castiel says.

"Hello yourself." Dean slides onto the bar stool next to him and steals his beer. "Decided you needed a drink too."

Castiel shrugs. "Yeah." _No, I wanted to be your drink,_ he doesn't say. Dean's eyes dilate as if he had.

"Cas..."

"Who's the girl?" Castiel asks quickly. "I would have thought you'd be over with her."

Dean smiles and Castiel wonders what his lips would feel like. "Jealous, darlin'?" he asks with a wink.

Castiel just scowls and tries to take back his beer. "What and how you do is your own business, Dean. As long as you're not stupid."

"You are jealous," Dean says quietly, sounding almost in shock. "Cas, she's a nixie. I smelled you coming in."

He almost asks why a nixie was in a bar flirting with a vampire but something else comes out. "You weren't going to..."

"What?" Dean asks leaning closer. "Fuck her? Bite her?"

Castiel swallows hard. Dean inhales sharply and he's aware that the vampire is scenting him.

"You wanted it to be you, didn't you?" Dean asks softly, carefully.

He doesn't want to be teased like this. To be tormented. Castiel pulls money out of his pocket and tosses it on the bar. "I'm leaving."

Dean follows him out side. "Cas, wait."

Castiel doesn't wait, just keeps walking.

A hand clamps around his shoulder, and damn it he'd forgotten Dean's so fast. And strong. "I said wait damn it."

"Fine," Castiel snaps and twists under Dean's grip. He slides his fingers into the close cropped hair and brings his mouth hard up against the mouth that's been haunting him for weeks.

Dean gasps and for a moment does nothing, until Castiel starts to pull away. Because shit, shit, shit, that was so damn stupid.

Then Dean re-angles their mouths and kisses him hard and hungry. Castiel groans and tightens his fingers. Their teeth scrape and bump. Dean's hands fist in Castiel's coat.

"Fuck," Dean breathes into his mouth between kisses. "Been wanting to do this."

Castiel kisses him again, turning it wet and messy. If he doesn't keep his mouth on Dean's, he's going to beg for things he shouldn't want. He's going to make a fool out of himself. This thing is insane but he wants it.

"Find a room or a back seat boys," a female voice says behind them. "Before the locals decide to get interested."

They break apart, and Castiel sees the red-head from the bar. Up-close Castiel can tell there's something not quite human about her. Eyes a little too milky, skin a little too perfect.

She smiles at Castiel with too white teeth. "Oh, he is delicious, Dean."

"Find your own," Dean tells her.

She giggles. "I do but they all leave me in the end, the pretty things." Then she frowns. "You'll kill the thing hurting the children?"

"We will," Castiel tells her, mentally reviewing everything he knows about the nixie. There are too many conflicting things in what he can remember.

She smiles again, this time kindly. "Thank you hunter. May you both know happiness." With a bow of her head she walks off into the night.

Dean makes a noise through his nose that's not entirely human. "Well that was a mood-breaker."

Castiel smiles and threads his fingers through Dean's belt loops. "Want to go make out in the back seat?"

The soft growl is answer enough.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

 

 _Don't wait up. ;)_ the words taunt Sam on his phone.

Sam groans and is tempted to text back _fuck you_. Then he does.

 _Get Gabe outta the room?_

Gabriel looks up from his DS and raises an eyebrow. Great Dean wants him to distract Gabriel.

Well, that's not exactly a hardship and since he had a flier for a midnight Godzilla marathon...

 _You owe me,_ he texts back, then shuts his phone.

He stares at the computer screen for several more moments then shuts it and slides it into it's bag. "Want to get out of here for a while?" he asks Gabriel. "I'm bored out of my mind and there's a Godzilla marathon at the theater around the corner."

Oh yeah, real subtle there Sam.

"I don't know, the Flower Festival is about to start..."

Sam rolls his eyes. "Really?"

Gabriel grins and turns off the game. "Yes, really, but Godzilla sounds good. You paying?"

"Only if you buy the snacks," Sam tells him.

"That's hardly fair," Gabriel protests.

Sam snorts. "I've seen the way you eat candy. You get to buy the snacks."

This is way to easy but Sam's not going to question it. Plus maybe he can get a little action of his own. Though with his luck he won't get more than some heavy kissing in the front seat of the Hummer.

"You are a horrible date," Gabriel declares as they head out the door.

Sam smiles widely. "Yeah, but I put out."

"That a promise, Giant-man?" Gabriel asks giving him a long leering look.

"I make no promises," Sam tells him climbing into the hummer. He loves how he can stretch his legs out, the Impala isn't bad but his legs get cramped sometimes. "You have to buy me popcorn first and then I'll think about letting you get to second base."

Gabriel squeezes Sam's thigh. "Yes, Princess."

"You're the one who plays Harvest Moon," Sam points out.

"I'll have you know Harvest Moon is a complex game of strategy," Gabriel pouts.

Sam leans over and nips his bottom lip. "Uh-huh."

Gabriel makes a face and Sam restrains himself from climbing across the center console and into his lap. "You just don't understand it's brilliance and complexity."

"I'm sure those skills will come in handy when you retire to a farm and raise livestock," Sam tease.

"You like livestock," Gabriel grins starting up the hummer.

Sam laughs. "So do you."

"Only if its cooked medium rare or between a hamburger bun," Gabriel tells him.

Sam laughs again, leaning back in his seat. "I guess we'll only have to raise cattle then."

Gabriel eyes light up with something Sam doesn't want to name. "Yeah, I guess we will."

They're at the theater before Sam realizes he'd said "we".

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Dean's managed to get Cas' jacket half off and shirt rucked up before Cas is able to unlock the door. He can't help it though, Cas is warm and responsive.

Cas' scent is enough to drive Dean mad. He nips at Cas' jaw winning another soft groan as they practically tumble into the room.

"Dean," Cas gasps dropping the keys on the floor, not that Dean gives a damn.

He kicks the door shut with his boot and grips Cas' hair to tug him forward for another kiss. Dean knows he should slow down. He smells the thread of fear mixed with arousal. He smells how frickin' _untouched_ Cas is. It makes his mouth water, makes him even more eager to _take_.

Cas shoves at Dean's jacket the same time Dean tries to free Cas' arms of his. It causes a bright laugh from Cas and it's infectious. They wind up pressed forehead to forehead giggling like idiots.

"Maybe we should take our own jackets off," Cas suggests.

Dean grins. "Whatever you say, college boy."

Cas moves forward until they're plastered against each other. "We could just keep our clothes on," he suggests.

"Fuck," Dean swears because the image that fills his head brings him fully hard. So easy to push Cas against the wall, the door, any flat surface, shove his thigh between Cas' legs, shove his hands under Cas' shirt, and just _rut_.

"I'd rather see you naked instead of coming in my jeans," Cas tells him.

Dean's not sure he's going to survive this. "Guess that's only fair seeing how I've seen most of what you have to offer." Dean nips just under Cas' ear, then presses his nose against Cas' skin and breathes in deep. "Looking forward to seeing the whole package."

Cas' gasps and lets head falls to the side. "Promise I'm not wearing rainbow boxers this time."

"Baby, I don't care if you're wearing unicorn boxers as long as they come off," Dean assures him with a snorted laugh.

Cas laughs again then moans as Dean licks a long wet strip across Cas' neck. Gods not sinking his fangs in when he's got Cas laid out under him is going to be torture. His hips jerk forward and finds Cas' just as hard. "Careful, vampire - oh - or I'll hold you to that."

Dean pushes his hands under the back of Cas' shirts, and run his nails up Cas' spine. He's reward with a quick greedy push of hips. Cas makes a sound in the back of his throat that turns Dean's blood to fire. The human captures Dean's mouth in a rough, bruising kiss.

When Cas pulls away, panting for air, he plants his hands on Dean's chest and pushes. "Let go."

Dean frowns, but does so. "Second thoughts?" he asks, trying not to sound frustrated. It's the guys first time, he's not going to be a douche and pressure him.

Cas smiles serenely then sheds his jacket and pulls his shirt over his head. "No. You?" There are acres of skin begging to be touched, licked, kissed. Dean's mouth waters.

"Hell no," Dean answers. His own jacket and shirts hit the floor moments later. Speed has it's advantages in more than just fighting. He steps forward and runs a finger down from Cas' clavicle down over his stomach and lower. He relishes the way Cas' muscles contract, then tucks his fingers into the edge of his jeans. "Seriously though Cas. You wanna stop? Just tell me and we'll stop."

There's such... emotion in Cas' eyes that Dean glances away until Cas' fingers slide across his jaw. "I won't need to. You won't do anything I don't want or like."

Dean exhales noisily. "Cas, don't trust me like that. I'm not human."

Cas moves forward pressing their chests together, bare skin to bare skin. He skims his hands up Dean's back. Dean's skin comes alive under Cas' hands. "No, in some ways you're better."

There's nothing Dean's capable of doing, saying to answer that. So he surges forwards sealing his mouth over Cas'. He's fangs descend and he growls as Cas' strokes his tongue over one.

They kiss like they need each other more than air. Their bodies press and shift together, cocks rubbing together through four layers of fabric. Cas' fingers clumsily fumble with Dean's button and zipper. Dean groans, Cas' inexperience driving him crazy with want. His own fingers feel awkward as he works at Cas' jeans.

He shoves his hand inside Cas' jeans and strokes him through his boxers. Cas' hips shudder and his hands abandon Dean's jeans to clutch at his hips. "Dean," he keens, head tipping backwards.

Dean licks and kisses, carefully keeping his fangs from Cas' skin. He pushes his hand inside Cas' boxers and starts to jack him. "You sound so good," Dean praises as Cas makes more broken little sounds. He runs his thumb over the tip of Cas' cock and spread the slickness over him.

"God," Cas whimpers, fingers digging into Dean's waist. Blunt nails biting the skin. His hips match the rhythm Dean sets.

Dean rubs his nose over Cas' throat breathing him in, running his own tongue up and down his fangs. "Feel good?"

Cas' nods almost frantically. "Yes, yes."

His heart is beating frantically and each pulse calls to Dean's blood. "Gonna make you come just like this," he promises. Cas hips shudder out of rhythm. "Then I'm going to spread you out, taste every inch of skin. Slick up my fingers and press them inside you. Make you wet for me. Fuck you 'til you scream my name. You want that?"

One of Cas' hand comes up to grip Dean's shoulder, holding on like it's the only thing holding him up right. "Please, yes, that."

Dean lifts his head to look at Cas' face, his eyes. Cas' eyes are blown wide, only a thin ring of blue visible. His mouth his slick and swollen from Dean's kisses. Bitten red. Dean has to kiss him again, ruin that mouth a little more.

Cas makes a sound that's lost in Dean's mouth, then he's gone. Coming all over Dean's hand, hips jerking, whole body shuddering. Dean works him through it, holding him up with a hand braced between Cas' shoulders.

"Dean," Cas slurs, slumping against Dean. He's loose and pliant, his forehead resting on Dean's shoulder.

"Beautiful," Dean tells him. He tries to remember a time when bringing a lover to climax made him feel as if he'd been given a gift. When the scent made his blood sing with something more than arousal.

It's easy to press Cas down on to the bed. Cas smiles up at him, lifting his hips so Dean can strip off his damp jeans and boxers. "I should make you clean those," Cas tells him.

Dean laughs. "I'm not the one who made the mess," he teases.

Cas makes a face at him. "It's your fault." He stretches out on the bed, all long lines and pale skin. Dean wants to take and take and take.

"You liked it," Dean reminds him, stripping off the rest of his clothes.

"Figure that out all on your own?" Cas teases right back. He sits up and slides his hands up Dean's thighs. His fingers trail across Dean's cock almost curiously.

Dean drags his fingers through Cas' hair and groan. He tries not to picture Cas mouth stretched around his cock and fails spectacularly. Cas doesn't help matters when he slides his thumb over the tip, then strokes up to the base. Dean pants trying to keep from thrusting forward.

He shakes with the effort to hold still as Cas' explores him, cradling Dean's balls, running his fingers down Dean's thighs. When Cas bends his head and flicks the tip of his tongue over the leaking tip of Dean's cock -- he fails.

His hips jerk forward, cock dragging across Cas' cheek leaving a streak of pre-come.

Cas eyes are wide and Dean growls. He pushes Cas down, drags him up the bed, covering the hunter's body with his own. "What you do to me, Cas. You have no idea what you do to me," he pants between wet messy kisses that leave both their mouths slick and ruined.

"Love your eyes," Cas tells him, spreading his legs around Dean's lip like they belonged there.

Dean drops his head and pushes against Cas, sliding his cock against the juncture of Cas' thigh. "Shit you can't just say things like that."

Cas bites at his neck and Dean loves him more than a little. "Again," he gasps.

He gets a harder bite and long fingers gripping his ass. "Dean." Another drag of teeth. "Dean."

"Yeah," Dean answers, rolling his hips. He pushes Cas' leg so his foot is flat on the bed and tucks his hand between their bodies.

Cas shudders and pulls Dean's head up for a kiss. Dean grins into, fangs pressing against Cas' lips. There's a taste of blood that make Dean's senses go haywire for a moment. Dean expects, fears, Cas pulling away but just gets a harder kiss and another tantalizing taste of blood.

Dean circles a finger around the tight ring of muscles. "Dean," Cas whimpers. Fear spikes in Cas' scent but he doesn't say no, he doesn't say stop.

He presses his finger in, just slightly. Cas' hips jerk as if he doesn't know which way to go. They need lube, Dean thinks. Cas is going to take a lot of prep if this is going to good for him. And Dean wants this to be good for him.

"Shit," he drops his head against Cas' chest. "No lube."

Cas makes a frustrated sound. "Lotion? Spit?"

Dean growls and shakes his head. Catches Cas' chin in his hands. "No. We're doing this right your first time," Dean tells him, then licks at the trace of red on his lips. "It isn't our last night together. We've got time, baby."

"How did you..."

"Your scent," Dean tells him bringing his nose to Cas' throat. "Tells me so many things, makes me want so many things."

Cas hooks a leg around Dean's hip. "Tell me," he demands. Dean can feel him half hard against his own arousal.

Dean rolls his hips again, sets a steady rhythm, teasing them both. "It sings to me," Dean whispers. He shouldn't be saying this. Shouldn't be telling Cas this. "Since I first scented you. Your blood, your scent, it called to me."

Long fingers squeeze his ass, encouraging him to speed up, to thrust harder. "You want my blood?" Cas' other hand rests against the back of his neck.

"Don't ask me that," Dean pleads. He doesn't want to disgust Cas, doesn't want to be pushed away.

Their hips move greedily against each other. Their cocks slide against each others, against sweat slick skin. Dean's fingers won't unclench from the sheets to press between them and stroke their cocks together.

Cas is fully hard again, gasping and moaning with each thrust, each arch. His head presses back against the sheets. He arches his neck.

Dean's fangs ache and his hips move harder. He's gotta come, gotta blow before the need to bite takes over.

"Dean," Cas' voice sound wrecked, ruined. "Tell me what you need."

He can't. _He can't._ "I need... fuck Cas... I need. Gotta bite you. Please," he begs, pleads, whines. "Cas."

Cas tilts his head to the side, gives Dean the long arch of his throat. "Yes, yes, Dean you can. I want it."

Dean's senses are filled with Cas. "Love you," Dean gasps, pressing his mouth against the juncture of Cas throat. He presses his fangs in.

Blood coats his tongue, fills him with the taste of Cas. It soothes and ignites his blood. Cas whines high and long, and spills between them wet and warm.

"Dean, Dean, Dean," Cas chants. Like a benediction. Like a plea.

Dean's barely slipped his fangs from Cas' throat, barely swallowed down the mouthful of blood richer and sweeter than he's ever tasted, when his own orgasm rips through him.

 

His own head snaps back and he roars Cas' name.

When his brain rejoins the world, he finds he's curled against Cas' side lapping at the marks on his throat. Cas' limbs are tangled with his, long fingers petting his hair.

"Love you," Cas whispers hoarsely.

Dean nods and closes his eyes again. Their fingers tangle together. They have time before dawn, they don't have to move yet.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Gabriel's only half paying attention to the movie as he presses another M&M into Sam's mouth. Sam grins around the chocolate treat. It still perplexes Gabriel that Sam and Dean can eat and enjoy it. Sam told him they don't really get anything out of it but flavor so eating for them is indulgence.

He knows for a fact they can still get drunk though.

"You keep feeding me your chocolate and I'll think you're trying to bribe me," Sam says softly. He leans over and kisses Gabriel sharing a taste of chocolate.

Gabriel grins slow and easy. "Maybe I am." He runs his tongue over Sam's bottom lip. "You're supposed to be distracting me, aren't you?"

"Am I doing a good job?" Sam asks. He kisses Gabriel again, his mouth warm and wet under Gabriel's. God, Gabriel's had some fantasies about that mouth wrapped around his cock.

Gabriel drags his thumb across Sam's bottom lip. "You have no idea," Gabriel tells him.

Sam nips at the pad of his thumb. "So I don't need to climb in your lap then?"

He's more than aware this could be a trap. That the vampire brothers could have plotted to separate them. But Sam's eyes...

There's such honesty there. Such warmth.

Gabriel hopes to God he never has to use the Colt on Sam.

"Gabriel?"

He blinks and finds Sam looking at him in concern. "Short circuited my brain for a second, Sammy. Didn't think you were into public sex."

Sam rolls his expressive eyes and laughs. "This is hardly public." He gestures on large hand out across the theater. There's about three or four other people and one usher whose obviously slacking on the job.

"Well Godzilla vs Mothra doesn't start for another thirty minutes," Gabriel says. "Bet the room fills up then."

As if in retaliation Sam reaches over and gropes Gabriel crotch. He sucks in a quick breath going half hard as Sam's hand stays there and rubs slowly. "What happened to climbing into my lap?"

"Seats are too narrow," Sam tells him sensibly, his hand still moving.

Gabriel turns his head to the side and see a color flushing Sam's cheeks. He's so damn _human_ sometimes. But his skin is hotter, his mouth an inferno -- so many things that scream _inhuman_ , _monster_.

Sam's lips are parted slightly and Gabriel has to kiss him. Then he reluctantly pushes Sam's hand away. "C'mon Sammy," he tells the vampire as he gets to his feet. He pockets the bag of M&Ms.

He gets a questioning look from Sam, but the vampire gets to his feet and follows Gabriel down the dark aisle to the exit door at the end of the theater. "Gabriel --"

Gabriel pushes Sam against the brick. Sam goes, eyes blowing wide, tangles his fingers in Gabriel's hair as they kiss. The height difference makes it difficult, but its worth it, so damn worth it. He presses in close, feels Sam getting hard through his jeans. "Such a tease, Sammy-boy."

Sam groans softly, spreading his stance to let Gabriel fit even better between his long legs. Fuck but Gabriel's looking forward to climbing this mountain.

"Only a tease if I don't put out," Sam protests against Gabriel's mouth.

Gabriel nips at Sam's bottom lips. He's playing with fire and he loves it. "You gonna put out for me, Godzilla?"

Sam laughs, tipping his head back. "Not if you call me that."

"I think I could change your mind," Gabriel tells him, tugging the button of Sam's jean's free.

"Sorry, I don't have sex with people that call me a giant murderous lizard," Sam grins. He runs his blunt nails over the back of Gabriel's neck, provoking a shiver.

Gabriel pushes a hand under Sam's shirt and palms his flat stomach. "Godzilla wasn't murderous, just misunderstood."

"You keep telling yourself that," Sam laughs, then moans as Gabriel's tugs down his zipper.

He moans again as Gabriel sinks to his knees tugging down Sam's jeans with him. Gabriel wants to see how many different sounds he can pull out of Sam, how loud he can make his vampire be. He nuzzles Sam's cock through his briefs.

Sam's hips jerk forward and his fingers tighten briefly in Gabriel's hair. "Fuck, damn it, we shouldn't be doing this here," Sam gasps.

Gabriel nuzzles again and mouths Sam. "You're still gonna let me. Aren't you?" He tugs down Sam's briefs, leaving them mid-thigh. Running his fingers up the insides of Sam's thighs, Gabriel savors the whimpered sound of his name and the way Sam's legs try to part further.

"Ah," Sam gasps, fingers tightening and relaxing in Gabriel's hair.

They've been teasing each other for weeks. He's been playing with fire for weeks. Now it's time to see if he'll burn. "Want my mouth on you?" He lets his breath ghost across Sam's hard curving cock.

Above him Sam bites his lip then nods. "Yes." His head thunks back against the rough bricks. "Maybe it'll shut you up."

Gabriel laughs. "That's what you think." He runs the tip of his tongue over Sam, tracing the vein. Sam's uncut, proportional, and leaking. He's fucking glorious.

Sam makes a strangled sound that Gabriel takes as encouragement.

"I always try to talk with my mouth full," he tells Sam, wrapping his hand around Sam's cock and slowly starting to jack him.

The sounds Sam makes is fucking amazing and Gabriel decides he needs to make Sam makes those as much as possible. He tongues the slit and plays with the extra skin with his tongue. Sam's hand pushes him forward then stops abruptly.

"S-sorry," Sam stutters out.

Gabriel licks the tip again. "Nah, I like you greedy. I like you impatient." He gives Sam a wide grin, licks his lips and takes Sam into his mouth.

He hears the soft thud of Sam's head against the brick. "Blast," Sam groans.

 

"Mmm," Gabriel hums in agreement. He wraps his hand around the base and works him. Draws whimpers and moans from Sam's lips.

Sam tastes like nothing else. It's not that he's had a lot of cocks in his mouth, okay lie, but there's something...

His fingers tighten on Sam's hip as they jerk with the need to thrust. Gabriel glances up and see's Sam staring down at him. Eyes white, fangs biting his own bottom lip. Small trails of blood from his lips.

Gabriel knows Sam's not going to last long. Can see it in ever line of Sam's form. His own cock in an aching throb against his zipper. Sam's hip jerk forwards and Gabriel's strokes the crease of his tight entrance with his thumb. Let's Sam thrust shallowly, listens to him whine and beg.

Sam's fingers scrabble against the back of Gabriel's skull. "Gabriel, close," he warns voice rough.

He hums around Sam again and hollows his cheeks.

The vampire arches beautifully, making a sound no human throat could produce and spills across Gabriel's tongue. Gabriel works Sam through it with his mouth and hand. Finally pulls away when Sam pulls at his hair with a whine.

Gabriel gives Sam's limp cock a goodbye lick and tugs up Sam's underwear and jeans. He moves up Sam's body wanting to kiss Sam, wanting to share his taste with him.

Sam's lips are red with his own blood and Gabriel pulls up short. "Sam," he says softly, not sure how to ask this.

The larger man curves forward, pressing his sweaty forehead to Gabriel's. "That was awesome."

Gabriel grins because who doesn't like being told that. Big ego stroke there. "I want to kiss you, Sammy."

"So, kiss me," Sam tells him. His fangs are still out, white and sharp.

"Your mouth is bloody," Gabriel tells him. "Don't feel like drinking blood the rest of eternity because I wanted a kiss."

Sam blinks, his eyes dilating then shifting back to a muddy green. "Oh. Doesn't work that way for us. We've got to want to Make you."

Gabriel tucks that information away for later. He wonders if he trusts that to be the truth.

There must be some of that mistrust in his eyes because Sam straightens and wipes his mouth with his hand. "I'll rinse my mouth out," he promises.

He doesn't tell Sam he doesn't have to, just grips Sam's hips and nips his collar bone through his shirt. He's still hard and rocks his hips against Sam's leg. "Ever fuck in the back of a hummer?"

Sam laughs and shakes his head, some of his hair falling into his eyes. "Nope."

Gabriel tugs at his shirt. "Well we can't have that."

There's nothing in Sam's body that says no and he let's Gabriel pull him towards the parked Hummer.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

The backseat of the Hummer folds down. Sam thinks it's brilliant and loves Gabriel just a little for it. And for the fact Gabriel keeps a stash of lube in there as well.

And Gabriel's fingers. He loves Gabriel's fingers.

Fingers currently inside him stretching him open. His astride Gabriel's lap, hand pressed to the roof as he pushes himself down onto Gabriel's thick fingers. "Hnn," he whines as Gabriel scissors them.

Sam's already hard again. His cock rubs against Gabriel's and he splays his hand across Gabriel's chest.

"You're so damn tight," Gabriel growls. "Been a long time?"

He bites his bottom lip and nods. "Yes," the word slurs out as Gabriel adds a third finger. It's been forever. Decades. Longer.

Gabriel grins, smug and sure. "I'll have to make sure you're good and ready for me then."

Sam whines again, spreads his legs as far as he can around Gabriel's hips in the confines of the backseat. Sweat trickles down his back right between his shoulder blades. His back muscles quiver and he grits his teeth against it. He pushes himself down harder on to Gabriel's fingers.

He's never lost control before and he isn't going to now. God, it be the biggest fuck up if he did. He doesn't want Gabriel to see that.

Gabriel pulls his fingers free and adds more lube to them. Sam digs his nails into the roof lining as they press back in. "I'm ready. Please, I'm ready."

His plea gets him spread fingers which he can't help but clench around. Gabriel free hand catches his hair and tugs him down for a long, messy kiss. "Can't wait to be inside you," Gabriel says, bitting Sam's chin.

The fingers slip out of Sam. He takes a trembling breath and raises up as much as he can. Then slowly brings himself down onto Gabriel's cock. It splits him open and it feels thicker than it looked. Sam pants and swears.

Gabriel's finger nails dig into his hips. "Fuck."

"Yeah," Sam agrees. He closes his eyes and breathes through his nose. Gabriel scent is heady and thick in the small space. Chocolate and the spicy tint of arousal. It makes his mouth water and his fangs ache.

Shit, when had his fangs come back out?

Gabriel bends his knees and pushes upwards, jarring a cry from Sam's chest. He pushes back down and gets an answering cry. They fall into a fast rhythm, Sam riding Gabriel for all he's worth, pushing down with every thrust of Gabriel's hips upwards. Sam's hand is pressed against the roof again, his other hand on the headrest of the front seat.

Sam lets his head fall back. Moans and keens freely, soaks in the litany of swears and praises from Gabriel. _So fucking tight, Sam, could fuck you for hours._ _Yeah, ride me hard. No idea how hot you are like this._

His back spasms and Sam whines. _No. No._ Then Gabriel shifts just slightly, changing the angle just a bit, and hits something inside Sam that makes his mind blank out.

"Want to see you come, Sam," Gabriel growls and wraps his hand around Sam's cock.

Sam shakes his head from side to side. It's like heaven and hell. Fire in his back, fire in his stomach.

Then he's gone. He wails Gabriel's name, his back arching as he comes. There's a tearing of skin between his shoulder blades and he wails louder, pain mixing with pleasure.

Gabriel swears, thrusts up again and spills hot and wet inside Sam. Just as Sam's wings tear free with a snap.

Sam topples forward barely catching himself from crushing Gabriel. "No, no, no, no," Sam thinks. Then realizes he's saying it out loud. He tries to sit up, to pull away. He needs to get away before Gabriel calls him a monster, before Gabriel tries to kill him. Fuck, why?

"Where do you think you're going?" Gabriel asks roughly, tightening his grip on Sam's hips.

Sam could easily break his hold. And he should. He always gets hungry after his wings come out and he doesn't want to see Gabriel disgust. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Let me go, I'll go."

"The hell I'm gonna let you go," Gabriel snaps. "Just hold still and calm down."

He shouldn't but he does. At least he holds still. He closes his eyes and bites his own lip. Waiting.

When Gabriel's fingers run over the span of one of the wings, Sam flinches. "Sorry, did that hurt?"

Sam blinks his eyes open and shakes his head. No, it just... he didn't expect a gentle touch. "No. I'm not used to people touching them."

Gabriel reaches out again and runs a finger over the top ridge. "Guess this explains why Dean calls you bat wings."

"Dean is an ass," Sam mutters without much venom. Gabriel's touch feels wonderful. Pleasurable and soothing. Like a good back rub.

"Won't aruge with that," Gabriel says with a grin.

Gabriel continues touching Sam's wings like he can't help himself. Humming softly as he does so. "These are amazing. Can you fly with them?"

"Not really. I can glide though," Sam confesses. There's a warm happy feeling building in his chest because Gabriel's not disgusted, Gabriel seems to _like_ his horrible wings.

"You'd better let me watch sometime," Gabriel tells, tugging Sam down gently by his right wing for a kiss. "These things going to come out every time we have sex?"

Sam's fangs ache almost unbearably when Gabriel runs his tongue over one. "Don't know, they never have before."

Gabriel's grin is cocky, and shit he shouldn't have feed Gabriel's ego like that. "You'll just have to pop them out before we fuck then in the future."

A shiver runs down Sam's back and travels across his wings at that thought. Gabriel's far from disgusted he wants more of Sam. His stomach twists then reminding him that he needs at least some blood, if only a mouthful. "Gabriel, you gotta let me go. I've got to get to the Impala."

"Why?" Gabriel asks rubbing his hand right below where Sam's wings come out. He pulls his hand back quickly. "Shit, you're bleeding!"

Sam shakes his head. "It's stopped. Always a bit of messy when they come out of my back." He closes his eyes and inhales, which turns out to be a mistake because Gabriel smells so damn good. Chocolate and sex with Sam's scent laced through it. "I need some blood. Always do after my wings come free."

Gabriel pets Sam's hair but doesn't give him room to get up. "How much?"

"Gabriel..."

The fingers tighten and Gabriel's eyes are dark, serious. "How much, Sam?"

Sam closes his eyes again. "Barely a mouthful. I can wait until we get back."

Gabriel sighs. "Fuck."

Skin is pressed against Sam's mouth, a pulse thunders under his lips. Sam's eyes slam open. Gabriel's wrist presses against his mouth. Sam makes a sound in the back of his throat that he knows isn't human.

"Do it," Gabriel tells him.

Sam shakes his head. He smells the fear. He won't do this to Gabriel, it might ruin things.

"Don't be such a damn martyr, and bite me, Sam. I want you to," Gabriel growls.

Gabriel's pulse is fast and heady. Sam flicks out his tongue to taste Gabriel's skin. Salty and rich. He wraps his hand around Gabriel's forearm and carefully sinks his teeth in.

He groans at the first taste and Gabriel arches up under him. It's only a few seconds before he's retracting his fangs and licking the wounds closed, but it feels like a entirety in heaven. Sam half collapses on the small man. Gabriel doesn't complain though, just pets his hair and his wings.

"We're getting our own room tonight," Gabriel says against Sam's skin.

Sam nods and breathes Gabriel in.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Castiel makes a noise of protest as his very warm and very comfortable pillow begins to slide away from him. He holds onto it tighter, sure that Gabriel is being an ass again.

"Cas, you gotta let me up. It's almost dawn," Dean says in a fond, but exasperated tone.

He opens his eyes barely slits and sees Dean looking at him. "Oh," he mumbles letting Dean slid away.

He watches Dean pull on underwear then frown at the other bed. "Guess Gabe and Sammy found someplace else to bed down for the day."

Castiel sits up and watches curiously as Dean grabs the pillows and blankets off Gabriel's bed and carries them to the bathroom. _Oh_. He rubs his hand over his face.

"You can go back to sleep," Dean tells him from the bathroom where he's making a pallet from the blankets and pillows. He comes back out and pauses bending over to kiss Castiel. "Really, baby, I'll be fine. You've seen me bedding on the bathroom floor before."

Castiel nods. He has but that was before -- and they just -- and he --

He climbs out of bed while Dean's stripping everything off the other bed. Castiel retrieves and tugs on his boxers. He doesn't want to sleep alone, he doesn't want Dean to sleep alone. "You can use our sleeping bags," Castiel offers.

Dean looks up and flashes Castiel a smile. "That be great. Thanks, Cas."

Castiel grabs both of the sleeping bags and spreads the out of the floor over the blankets Dean already put there. "Do you need help?" he asks, watching Dean pick up the mattress.

"Nah, I got it. Trade off for the sun thing," he pushes past Castiel.

For a moment Castiel's confused as to what Dean's doing as he lays the mattress across the tub and toilet. It creates a small dark space on the floor.

"Dean," Castiel starts and is silenced by a kiss.

"Really, go back to bed. Get some sleep," Dean tells him, sliding a hand down Castiel's bare back. He nips Castiel's throat with blunt teeth. "I'll see you in the evening and I'll take you out for pie."

Castiel smiles. "I'd like that."

Dean kisses him again. "Good."

He watches Dean wedge himself under the mattress and reach out for the door. "Wait."

Dean pauses, raising an eyebrow at Castiel. "Yeah?"

Castiel moves forward and crouches down so he can push into that small dark space too. He catches the bottom edge of the bathroom door and tugs it closed after him. "We sleep together from now on," Castiel tells Dean firmly, finding his skin in the dark.

Their bodies curl around each other as Dean fits his chin against Castiel's shoulder. "Yeah, we will," Dean agrees.

They find each others hands in the dark and tangle their fingers together.

Castiel falls asleep to Dean singing softly, sleepily under his breath.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

They've just pulled in towards the abandoned church he and Dean have been staying in. Gabriel and Cas are right behind them. It's been a good night. They've put a Woman in White to rest and they've got a good lead on where the yellow-eyed demon might be in Maryland.

Sam's just climbed out of the Impala when he feels, smells it. The prickling on the back of his neck, the tinny and sulfur mixed scent.

"Hello, Samuel," a voice says, syrupy sweet.

The yellowed eyed demon stands not two feet from him. Wearing what has to be Michael Courier.

Sam can smell fire, can hear his mother scream, taste the sickening black blood on his tongue.

The demon smiles. "I see you remember me."

He takes a step back and chokes on a scream.

"How nice to see you again, Samuel. I've missed you," the demon purrs.

Sam whimpers.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

Gabriel's watches Cas' hand tightens around the Colt. He should use it. He has to use it. Gabriel knows this.

But God he knows Cas can't.

It's their _brother_. The demon is riding Michael. Oh God, the demon is inside Michael.

"Oh what clever fledges John has, convincing two hunters that they are more than walking meals," croons the thing wearing Michael Courier's body.

Dean snarls, showing his fangs. "Shut up!"

The yellow-eyed demon ignores him and smiles at Gabriel and Castiel. "What _would_ your brother think?"

Gabriel inhales sharply. Michael wouldn't understand - Michael would want them dead -- would want _Sam_ dead.

"Maybe we should find out? Hm?"

Cas' mouth opens but no words come out, Gabriel can see his eyes darting from the demon to Dean and then back.

"Or maybe I should break the enthrall Decanus and Samuel have you two little humans under?" Yellow eyes says it almost kindly. "They can do that you know. It's how they lure in their prey and keep them until they want a new flavor. I could free you both -- I ask for so little."

Gabriel's jaw clenches harder and harder. Cas has taken a step back and Gabriel wishes he knew what was going on in his little brother's head.

The fury is pouring off of Dean in waves and he jerks his head toward Cas. "You aren't going to take a fucking demons word are you?"

Cas is silent and Dean looks -- betrayed.

It makes Gabriel for the first time glance at Sam from the corner of his eyes. The younger vampire looks stricken, terrified, and is staring straight at Gabriel like he expects an attack from _him_ not the demon.

"Gabriel," the demon says in an agonizingly pleasant tone. "Has dear little Sammy shown off his wings to you and shown you what he _really_ is?"

Sam makes a wounded sound.

Dean growls deep and animalistic. "You son of a..."

"Maybe little Samuel wants another taste of my blood," the demon laughs. "Do think about my offer, Couriers. You know how to call me." Then in a blink he's gone but his laughter seems to echo.

Gabriel just stares at the space the demon... the demon wearing his brother had been. He can't look at Sam. He can't look at Cas. All he can do for a long space of time is close his eyes and breathe.

The sound of Dean's voice is what jerks him out of it. "You aren't enthralled, Cas. I swear to all the gods. I wouldn't... I would never..." The words trail off to a small, "Please."

Cas' laugh is warm, affectionate, and Gabriel has to admit to himself for the first time that maybe this thing between his brother and Dean isn't just sex. For either of them.

"Please, Dean. Enthralled? Really?" Cas is resting his forehead against Dean's. The vampire's fangs are gone and his eyes are green not that eerie white.

Dean makes a insulted sound. "I could totally enthrall your ass!"

"Prove it," Cas snorts.

Dean makes a face then nuzzles Cas' throat. A gesture Gabriel knows has nothing to do with the drinking of blood. "I don't feel like it," Dean mutters.

Cas laughs again and Gabriel suddenly feels like a intruder. He should drag Sammy back to the old church they've been holing up in and just hold him - yell at him - something. Only problem is when he turns towards Sam -- Sam isn't there.

Gabriel's only clue to where Sam is when he gets the church is a very soft sound coming from one of the crawl spaces behind where a organ once stood. It quickly halts as Gabriel moves closer to the hiding spot.

"Sam, I know you're up there," Gabriel sighs. He's not even sure why the hell Sam is hiding. Did Sam think the words of some demon wearing Gabriel's older brother would make him hate Sam? Gabriel's pissed, sure. Pissed that Sam's been hiding something. Pissed that Sam's hiding from him.

"You're going to kill me aren't you?" Sam's voice is just loud enough for Gabriel to hear. Sometimes Sam seems to forget that Gabriel can't hear like Sam can.

 _For the love of God_. "I'm not going to kill you!"

There's the sound like something scraping around in the crawl space. "Don't lie, I can smell your anger."

"Yeah, I'm pissed," Gabriel admits. "But I will be a thousand times more pissed if I have to get a step ladder."

Sam whimpers. Gabriel has the mental image of Sam curled into a ball as much as he can in the crawl space. It looks pretty big, but so is Sam.

Gabriel slumps against the wall and rubs his hands over his face. "Sammy."

"It's not true. It isn't," Sam protests.

"Cause your brother would just let me march up here and kill you. Get out of there!"

"You and Cas could have killed him first!" Sam yells.

"You can hear him down there being an idiot. I know you can." Gabriel is torn between anger of not being trusted and confusion at Sam being so -- fearful.

There's a pause. "Oh." But he still doesn't come down.

"Sam," Gabriel repeats calmly as he can. "Just come down and let me talk to you."

"No."

Gabriel kicks the splintered remains of a pew in frustration. "Fine. Stay up there," he spits bitterly. It hurts. Fuck does it hurt. "Starve up there for all I care."

There's a shifting noise then Sam hauls him up with one arm and the noise he makes isn't nearly as manly as it should have been. Sam's shaking though, eyes wide and fearful. His wings are out and curling back protectively around his large form.

That demon bastard had really gotten to Sam.

Gabriel reaches out a hand towards one to soothe him but Sam jerks back curling the wings more tightly around him. "I was pissed," Gabriel says carefully. "Because you didn't trust me to trust you. That you'd think of even a second I'd believe that son of a bitch."

Sam tucks his head against his wing for a moment and Gabriel aches for him. "Sam --"

"He fed me his blood," Sam whispers.

Gabriel freezes. If demon blood could fuck up a human --

"I was barely Made. I couldn't fight him off -- Mom tried to stop him --" the words die in Sam's throat. "She died because of me. She burned."

"Sam," Gabriel says softly, edging forward.

Sam flares his wings slightly. "That's where these things came from. I'm tainted Gabriel, I'm wrong."

Gabriel growls and hauls Sam forward kissing him long and hard. "You're perfect for me."

"Gabriel," Sam breathes into his mouth, his fangs sharp against Gabriel's tongue.

"I want you, freaky eyes, wings, fangs and all, you giant idiot," Gabriel tells him. He threads his fingers through Sam's shaggy hair, strokes the ridges of Sam's wings.

Sam shudders against him, whining low and inhuman in his throat.

Gabriel presses his wrist against Sam's mouth. Because shit they both need this. "Take what you need, Sammy."

"Gabriel," Sam half growls against Gabriel's skin, like its the only word he knows. The wet warm swipe of Sam's tongue over his pulse point, makes Gabriel inhale sharply.

He tightens his fingers, anchoring Sam to him. The words twist in his mouth and come out, "mine." But Sam growls almost happily and the first sharp prick of fangs twists into weird achy bliss. Even more than normal.

Sam's fangs sink deeper and Gabriel's hips arch. It's always so good, too good, could let Sam do this forever. His fingers tighten on Sam's wings as thoughts that aren't his echo through his mind. _Love you, love you, love you, love you._

"Yes, love you," Gabriel gasps out, as Sam's fangs slip from his wrist.

They curl together in a tangle of arms, legs, and wings. Sam's tongue laps lazily at his skin and Gabriel decides he'll fight anyone, anything to keep this.

ϞϟϠϡϗ

"You'll never guess who I saw today," the demon taunts in a sing song manner. The voice still sounds wrong coming from the young man, pitched too off key for Michael.

John clenches his jaw. "I don't really care."

The demon, Azazel, laughs. "Saw your dear little boys. Dear little Samuel is all grown up isn't he? Not that fledgling your Mary tried so hard to keep from me."

Despite himself John growls, teeth coming out. "If you hurt them, you son of a bitch..."

"You'll what, Johnny?" the demon laughs.

John yanks against the chains and growls again.

"That's what I thought," Azaael laughs. "Now be good and take care of Mikey for me. I have some 'errands' to run."

Black smoke pours out of Michael's mouth and the human falls to the floor.

John moves over to him, turning him over and checking Michael's injuries. "Son of a bitch is keeping you a mess," John mutters, looking the boy over. He's young and from what John's seen, stubborn and hard headed. Reminds him of Dean.

The boy had spoken of his father, when he was conscious once. His daddy had been a hunter. He'd raised his two brothers by himself. John can't help but see Dean hovering protectively over Sam, holding him tightly, trying to get the demon blood off his little brother.

Michael's shitkicked to put it mildly. John knows why. He knows what the hellspawn wants.

Azazel wants John to 'save' Michael. To turn him.

John's figured out that the demon needs a newly turned vampire for his little ritual. And John'll be damned if he's going to given Azazel that.

"John?" Michael mumbles, eyes opening just barely.

"Hey kid," John says. "Glad to have you back."


End file.
